The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released statistics comparing accident death rates among a large number of 1999 - 2002 model year vehicles. The 4Runner was second best overall and the safest SUV surveyed, bested only by the previous generation Mercedes E-Class sedan.

Worst was the Chevrolet Blazer 2-door, which had a death rate almost 30 times that of the best vehicles.

Go here: http://synformix.com/xfer/sr4003.pdf for the full report.

 

Thanks for posting that -- I think the study may change folk's perceptions about cars and SUVs' relative safety. For example, I know several people that drive BIG SUVs (Suburbans, Yukons) because they believe that these are the safest vehicles to be in if they're in an accident. But the Suburban death rate is nearly 4 times the 4Runner's. I printed out the article so I can share it with others.

 

I knew Runners were relatively safe but I'm glad I know how safe they are.

 

yea, thats awesome. look at the other chart... blazers are scary!

thanks for the link

 

The thing to remember is that there are many test that prove that the reason a lot of fatalities occur in rollover accidents is not due to the rollover itself or the cars structure, but has to do with all the cargo flying around inside the vehicle causing severe head truama. I would bet that all those big Suburbans driven by soccer moms have a lot of "junk" in there that may be part of the reason. Probably on a small part, but it is still worth noting. So, we need to keep in mind how we load our cargo, especially on 4WD adventures when we have tool boxes, air compressors, high jacks, etc. Those things are all lethal missiles.

 

Since this is a .pdf, here is a trick for everyone:

Once opened, hit CTRL+L, then CTRL+3. It will be much easier to view.

 

wow...

my 99 4runner has 1/4 the fatality rate that my wife's 2003 (same as a 2002) Acura TL has...

her next vehicle will probally be a UZJ-100. i guess there's not enough of them to list the fatality rate accurately...

 

I find this interesting...
On the first and second charts. The Lowest Death Rate chart, only 3 cars are of American Design, 2 are Cadillacs, 1 Mercury.
On the Highest Death Rate chart only 5 are Imports. 3 are Kias, 1 Mazda, 1 Mitsubishi.
7 of the 14 on the highest death rate chart are Chevys.
Wow...

 

Number of deaths divided by vehicles on the road? And that is to judge safety?

Why not crunch some numbers and see what vehicles get the least speeding tickets then compile a list of vehicles that can't go fast.


It's about demographics. Old ladies in Buicks are less prone to speed.

 

They do actually point out these types of reasons for certain discrepancies. At least at first glance, it seems to be pretty well written and researched.

 

A for effort. F for methodology.

 

I noticed that there were more deaths in Pontiac Firebirds than in Chevy Camaros, I thought that was strange since they are the same car structurally. That does go to show that the results aren't perfect but like others have said, I am glad to know that our trucks are very safe compared to most other vehicles on the road!

 

I say that as long as you are aware of the limitations of the way the numbers were crunched, then you can draw some good conclusions. Unfortunately not everyone is as brilliant as we are!

 

The 4Runner has fared well in NHTSA crash testing so that combined with this study makes for fairly substantial proof.

 

Yet my insurance went up from my 2000 Xterra to my 98 4 Runner by $160.
They said it is because statistically the 4 runner gets into more wrecks. Talk about screwing up numbers, no kidding, there only a billion more on the road. State Farm sucks.

 

My '99 was cheaper to insure than my '97 by $15 a month for some reason.

 

What do car insurance rates have to do with driver fatality statistics?

 

I think cars that do not test well affect rates since I know repair cost do but I'm sure there's info that contradicts that.

 

I doubt auto insurance companies care about fatalities, unless they plan on post mortal premium hikes. Or paying to wash off the blood and returning the vehicle to surviving policy holders.

Life insurance companies, on the other hand, should care.

 

You do have medical expenses paid by your insurance and I think some policies pay out in case of death so insurance companies might care.