According to AA motoring services, drivers and passengers are twice as likely to die in a car crash if their vehicle was built before 2000.
To illustrate this point, the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme (Ancap) conducted a crash test with two Toyota Corollas. One car was built in 1998, the other in 2015.
In the video below, both cars accelerate to 40 mph (64 kmph) before crashing into each other.
AA motoring services general manager Stella Stocks notes that “cabin strength and cabin forms in cars have changed” over the last 20 years. The front and rear end of modern vehicles absorb more of the kinetic energy than older cars and the improved cabins retain their original shape. These body improvements coupled with better resraints and air bags have drastically increased a passenger’s chance of survival in a head on collision.
