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http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/2/Japanese_Flag_30x22.jpg The Insurance Institute concluded the susceptibility to damage seen among hybrids was part of a broader problem affecting small compact economy cars. (http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2010/09/10/hybrid-cars-are-they-too-fragile/)

http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2010_Honda_Insight-II2.jpgJonathan Welsh - WSJ (http://blogs.wsj.com) - September 10, 2010

Can we make lighter, more efficient cars that are also more resistant to damage... at a reasonable cost? --Ed.

The question came up following a colleague’s fender bender in a Honda Insight hybrid. What seemed like a minor bump left the car undrivable and crumpled to the tune of several thousand dollars of repair work. So are hybrid cars more susceptible to damage than conventional models?

When summing up an accident such as this, one first has to talk through the denial (I’m sure I didn’t hit him that hard) and the fact that anyone who walks away unhurt from a car crash is lucky. We’re talking about potentially deadly force when two big objects weighing thousands of pounds come together, and people die in low-speed collisions all the time.

Beyond that, though, there might be something to the theory that hybrids are particularly delicate, or at least expensive to fix in part because they are built with more fragile lightweight structures aimed at saving fuel. Because they have both electric and gasoline-powered drive systems, hybrids tend to be more densely packed with electronics and other components that may be more exposed to damage in a crash. A Toyota spokesman noted there is little room to spare under the hood of the company’s Prius hybrid, so certain parts may be exposed to damage in what seems like a minor crash.

Honda says the Insight shares a lot of its parts including its front-end assembly with the Honda Fit compact car. Crash damage to the Insight would be similar to that suffered by... http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2010/09/10/hybrid-cars-are-they-too-fragile/

Today's cars are safer than older ones, partly because they crumple in a crash. That's by design. It's awful to pay thousands to repair a parking-lot ding, but if it helps me survive a more serious wreck, I'll deal with it.

Some parts could be made a little more replaceable, though. :eyebrow: Replacing my rear quarter panel requires removing and reseating the windshield, because that panel arches up and over the doors and down the A pillar.

My only gripe with the Insight-II is that the paint scratches WAY too easily.

The solution to crash safety is to purge the highways of 6,000+ pound land yachts. Maybe there could be a government program to give Viagra to angry white men who drive Hummers because they can't rise to the occasion in bed.

Fragile paint-over-black-plastic, clip-on fairings masquerading as bumpers are no help. I doubt the traditional bumper will get a reprieve though, without legislation.

I bumped the rear of another car at low-speed in my old SAAB a couple years ago resulting in a broken headlight. It, too, resulted in several thousand dollars worth of damage which we opted not to have repaired (fortunately, since it was then totaled in a hit-skip a month later). At that time, the damage to the headlight would have cost 1/3 of what we still owed on it!

To the article: I like how the blog really does go away from its "shock and awe" headline and notes the problem is rooted in the damage-susceptibility of small cars in general and not just hybrids.

JP

Fragile paint-over-black plastic, clip-on fairings masquerading as bumpers are no help.

:rolleyes: especially when that single piece is half the car.

I'll take the additional repair costs to be able to walk away from an accident.

At least I'll be alive to buy another car. :)