Proliferation of 4WDs is a serious problem

摘要

Australia is currently experiencing ongoing significant reductions in serious and fatal injury in car crashes. Engineering developments and consumer programs have resulted in improved car safety available to most new-car buyers. However, the increasing popularity of 4WDs threatens to erode these safety gains. During the late 1980s, Australian road safety researchers observed that there were many significant occupant safety developments occurring in vehicles ih North America and Europe which were not reaching ordinary vehicles in Australia. These improved crashworthiness features had already been developed, trialled and put into production in luxury cars. With the experimentation and manufacturing hurdles overcome it was feasible to introduce the same safety features in new base model cars.