Just recently famed BBC tv show Fifth Gear did another series of crash tests, this time with shocking results. They crashed two IDENTICAL cars into each other head on at 40mph (I think), the only differance was that one was 2 inches lower than the other. The results were shocking, the higher car suffered almost no interior damage while the lower one suffered massive damage including the footwell and dash coming further into the cabin. The problem was in the height of the frame rails. Each car has 2 frame rails (hidden of course) in the front end, the lower the frame rails the more likely another car will be able to incur serious damage on your car due to the tendancy of another car to roll over yours and thus penetrating non-renforced maerial (ie hood, windshield), anyway, I would post the link to the episode, I think that might be borderline with respect to site rules, but I thought everyone should know (if you already didn't)

well crashing them into eachother isn't a good test. they should've hit them into a wall, it would be a constant and it would show how the lower car reacts as aposed to the higher one. Its like taking a corolla into a hummer doesnt' work.

yea i kno thats like saying take the stock car the had and hitting it into a truck thats 2 inches high then it stock, bet then same tihngs happened to that car that happened to the lowered one

In simple words the higher you stay more chances you have to survive the crash.

sometimes i wish i was still at stock height. i hate having to worry about bottoming out in some places cause the car is too low.

yeah but if your in a celica and you got a truck infront of you your screwed anyways

-Drocay+May 18, 2005 - 6:41 AM

how is it not a good test, u dont always hit walls. The test shows that the lower your car is compared to other cars the more dangeroius it is. And its not taking a corolla vs hummer. Its a normal height celica vs lowered celica. (or any 2 IDENTICAL cars for that matter)

it was not a good test.. the lower car had more weight on it.. not stiffer lowering spring.

that was probably why the car with more weight had more damage.

-lagos+May 22, 2005 - 7:46 PM
i don't even go to Wendy's anymore because it is impossible of entering/exiting without bottoming out because of the terrible construction of the road lol

-Hanyo+May 22, 2005 - 10:54 PM

I've watched 5th gear a few times and I'm not real happy with the show. They show good cars, but the tests they do are some real bull crap. They said they proved that if a person was a little drunk they would drive better. That one I didn't like. This business of putting wieght into the car to lower it is just stupid. It's simple science that the lower of 2 things will go under the higher. But most people lower there cars only 1-2 inches, this isn't enough to cause major differences in crashes.