Glad to hear you're father made it out OK John!

Crash protection was a convincing factor in buying the C230. My previous car (Celica) was a write off after a pick up truck ran a red.

I'm glad you're father's car did it's job!

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1998 C230

Mercedes have been experimenting with crush zones and safety cages since 1951! They are way ahead of their time.

Glad your father is safe.

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1987 300SDL (324000)

1986 Porsche 951 (944 Turbo) (166000)

1978 Porsche 924 (99000)

1996 Nissan Pathfinder R50 (201000)

Glad to hear your father was safe in the Benz

Glad to hear your father made it out alright. Our family's got 2 C's now, and it's good to hear the little car has a stout heart and a good frame.

Wow, I'm so glad your father came out of that ok. Another testament to the quality and safety that goes into these cars. They're not only beautiful to look at but they're reliable and safe to boot!

From what I'm hearing you cannot be killed or injured if you drive a Benz????
I guess the local lady that recently crossed the centerline in her S class and collided with a Toyota ain't really dead then!

Not at all. Never said that. People often run down the smaller cars for being "unsafe death traps." It's not so. The C-Class is about the same size as a Corolla, and allowed my Dad to survive a VERY serious crash. Is it any better than any other car? Well, I don't know, but I do know that his particular car performed well in a terrible situation.

Keep in mind that driving a Mercedes is no licence to drive beyond your ability or the conditions. I see no end of people in their SUV's upside down thanks to their low-rent all-season tires and over-confident driving style. AWD means ice is like dry pavement, right? Ha.

This is just one case of where the outcome was favourable, and I personally feel that the design elements of the car had plenty to do with that.

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John Shellenberg
1998 C230 "Black Betty" 240K

http://img31.exs.cx/img31/4050/tophat6.gif

Exactly right.

Botnst

what many people do not realize is that the energy that needs to be dissipated/absorbed in a crash is proportional to the square of the speed of the car. Virtually no car is survivable if it hits a solid barrier at highway speeds.

cars are designed for survival within a small range of operating vehicle speeds, and optimized for specific collision scenarios, those that are deemed the most common or probable. It is a matter of balancing many factors, including cost and performance.

Driving a Benz increases your chances of survival, but it also requires responsible driving.

Are Benz's safer than Volvo's? Are you safer in a big SUV? It depends on the collision.
In 1995 my wife was hit head head on by a man in a 1974 Chevrolet Camaro fleeing a sheriff's persuit. He slammed into her at 55 mph. She was driving a 1993 Toyota Camry. After the impact my wife pushed the airbag away from her, opened her door and got out. NOT A SCRATCH!!! The tow truck driver (many years of experience) told me he could not believe how well the little Camry protected her. He showed me how the safety hooks caught the hood and prevented it from shearing and slicing the windshield. He pointed out to me how the crumple zones in the front engine compartment and the trunk had crushed, yet all four doors operated perfectly. He described how the engine had started it's path down and under the car without contacting the firewall and damaging the passenger compartment.
Bottom line is every carmaker designs safety features into their cars now, and they get better every year. If I could choose which car I would crash, it would be my 99 Buick over the 'rock solid' W124.
Nameplates don't save people. Never think just because you follow the star means you have a better chance of survival.

also need to ensure that the equip is operational.

a girl turned left in front of me totaling my W124 last year.
i hit her door offset to my FL at approx 25 MPH.
no driver airbag deployment for me?

of course, who knows what happened to the W124 in the 175K miles it lived before i received it.

however, this makes me wonder further:

Bulletins for 1986 Mercedes Benz 300E (124 Chassis) L6-2960cc 3.0L SOHC (103)

Safety Recalls

TSB Number Issue Date TSB Title

95-0223 MAR 95 Recall - Wiring Harness Chafing/Shorting

87V073000 MAY 87
Recall 87V073000: Air Bag Connector May Unplug

The view is a little "lower" with the roof kinda not where it once was. Some custom car guys pay big bucks for "chopped."

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Dad was sure the car was "end over end" but the cops explained that he was in error. It went over three times, but in the "conventional" roll-over sense. The roof took a huckuva impact, but held up pretty good.

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The passenger side obliterated the armco and then it rolled down the embankment. Dad was worried that they weren't going to write it off, and he'd end up with a cobbled-up car back. Well, no chance of that. Every panel is damaged and the roof is caved in. No way $25K fixes this...

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If the SRS light was on all the time you were driving it, then the airbag would never deploy.

The car has certain impact sensors that sense how severe an accident might be. Since you are still on the message boards talking with us, it is apparent that the car did its job.

Man blackmercedes, that poor car. For the roof to do even that much buckling, the impact must have been pretty extreme.

__________________
1987 300SDL (324000)

1986 Porsche 951 (944 Turbo) (166000)

1978 Porsche 924 (99000)

1996 Nissan Pathfinder R50 (201000)