Debunking The Rollover Myth

[Bruce Levinson]

The myth that SUVs are more to rollovers than other vehicles has been debunked by NHTSA. The federal safety agency's new rollover tests indicated that "sport-utility vehicles are no more prone to roll over in crashes than other vehicles."

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[2strokebloke]

Interesting, I remember a while back they tested the center of gravity of a lot of vehicles, and found ALL SUVs to have a higher center of gravity than ALL cars. Which makes perfect sense, being that not only are SUVs taller than most cars, but they're also a bit further off of the ground.
Of course, just because a vehicle's center of gravity is higher, doesn't mean that in normal driving it's more likely to fall over.
Just a few weeks ago, five people died in my state in an SUV rollover accident.

[Colin Miller]

If SUV drivers would expand their following distances, sudden maneuvers would be eliminated.

It's the same for semi trucks. We should stay 7-10 seconds behind the car ahead. In addition, always be looking ahead 15 seconds.

For cars, that translates to a following distance of 3-5 seconds and looking ahead about 10 seconds.

When doing this simple task, you can see everything that happens on the road ahead of you. Controlled stops and actually not rear ending the car ahead are the results.

[Bruce Levinson]

There often need to be greater for many vehicles, regardless of whether or not they are SUVs. There is no subsitute for safe driving. However, since large truck drivers are generally professionals at work, it is not suprising that they tend in most cases to be better drivers than others.

[J-Ri]

Originally Posted by Colin Miller

For cars, that translates to a following distance of 3-5 seconds and looking ahead about 10 seconds.

"If I leave more than 10 feet between me and the car in front of me, someone tries to sneak in there" ... I don't drive that close to cars, but I wonder if that's what some people are thinking. Not to be sexist, or generalize one type of vehicle owner, but it seems like lots of women driving big SUVs get closer than anyone in any other type of vehicle.

One thing I do, that I was wondering about, is drafting semis. When going a long distance on the highway at night, I'll get within a foot or two of the trailer's bumper. I can usually get about 25 mpg riding the draft, compared to about 10 normally. Does that piss off truckers?

[Colin Miller]

Originally Posted by J-Ri

One thing I do, that I was wondering about, is drafting semis. When going a long distance on the highway at night, I'll get within a foot or two of the trailer's bumper. I can usually get about 25 mpg riding the draft, compared to about 10 normally. Does that piss off truckers?

Some yes, others not so much. Personally, I'm concerned about tire blowouts and the tread chunks coming into your windshield resulting in loss of control, a rollover and then multi million dollar lawsuit against me and my company.

Tailgate all you want. But be prepared for anything. I've seen some drivers slow down to 25 mph to force cars to go around. Not exactly the safest thing on a 65 mph interstate, but some guys do things differently.

[J-Ri]

Originally Posted by Colin Miller

Some yes, others not so much. Personally, I'm concerned about tire blowouts and the tread chunks coming into your windshield resulting in loss of control, a rollover and then multi million dollar lawsuit against me and my company.

Tailgate all you want. But be prepared for anything. I've seen some drivers slow down to 25 mph to force cars to go around. Not exactly the safest thing on a 65 mph interstate, but some guys do things differently.

My hood's about level with the bottom of the doors on the back, so i'm not concerned about personal injury. I wouldn't file a lawsuit for something like that... if it's my fault, I'll deal with it. I go around if the driver slows down at all, or if he/she pulls onto the shoulder.

[Colin Miller]

Originally Posted by J-Ri

My hood's about level with the bottom of the doors on the back, so i'm not concerned about personal injury. I wouldn't file a lawsuit for something like that... if it's my fault, I'll deal with it. I go around if the driver slows down at all, or if he/she pulls onto the shoulder.

Sadly, you're not everyone...

Lots of people would file in a heartbeat.