Why women sustain more serious injuries than men in car crashes

[Skanky Vamp]

On my Miata, the seatbelt plugs into a receptacle mounted on the seat itself

That's how it is on the mini, I never realized how nice that could be.

 

[gwenogjones]

I don't think sexism is the issue. I know plenty of women who have average male or greater mass who need the level of protection designed for a male. It comes down to short versus tall in many cases.

And this why sexism will never go away. We have the data that tells us it is women who suffer significantly more damage than men in car crashes. We have the explanation as to what causes that damage and we have the proof that safety regulations don't take the time to check for safety of women in the driving position. We know that they use average male and not average human data. (No they are not the same thing)

We can draw a line between lack of safety checks right the way up to women being 17% more likely to die in the same crash.

And people still think they can say 'it's not sexism.'
They think their opinion carries the same weight as the person who collected and studied all this data. And they dismiss her findings out of hand. They use sexism to deny sexism.

It's like banging your head against a brick wall.

 

[TriBel]

The average man in England is 5ft 9in (175.3cm) tall and weighs 13.16 stone (83.6kg).
The average woman in England is 5ft 3in (161.6cm) tall and weighs 11 stone (70.2kg).

Let me know when motor manufacturers start to use the latter as a standard and I'll get the popcorn in.

 

[Ethan Reigns]

Here is the final word on the dangers of car seating:

 

[Taake]

I mean, the problem to me is that it seems like a bad time for this discussion. Basically, that any car manufacturer that came out and said ”ladies we made a car safe for your delicate necks, smaller frames, and boobs” is going go get bad press for being sexist, and anyone who supports it might be labeled a TERF.
But everyone seems to get bad press now anyway. Maybe they can do it in silence.

On my Miata, the seatbelt plugs into a receptacle mounted on the seat itself and the seat can be adjusted back and forth,

I am so confused, isn’t that all cars?

 

[ILLYRIAN]

I can't wait for the family sized Hovercraft with racing seat belts, electric powered hovercraft that is.

Anyone for a game of dodgems?

 

[Skanky Vamp]

I am so confused, isn’t that all cars?

Not sure about the Miata, but mine has a latch directly on the seat like so

so that however, or wherever, I move the seat, the belt moves accordingly.

 

[Professor Walsh]

Not sure about the Miata, but mine has a latch directly on the seat like so

so that however, or wherever, I move the seat, the belt moves accordingly.

Smart. I have never seen something like that before.

 

[TriBel]

@Professor Walsh "vorsprung durch technik" (though I think, in this case, BMW and not Audi).

@Spanky My brother's got a big BMW and his partner's got a Mini. Options seem to double the price of the car. I'm surprised they don't charge to drive it off the forecourt.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

@Priceless a $30 option on BMW brand vehicles.

 

[Ethan Reigns]

Let's try this again:

Just another hazard (but I love the Subaru seat heaters).

 

[Skanky Vamp]

"And more than 20% of men crashed in pickups, compared with less than 5% of women."

here's an example why so many people drive trucks and they don't get as badly injured. If he were driving a car he would have been dead.

 

[DeepBlueJoy]

I have the same inseam as a man (long legs) but i am 5'6" and so my short torso means the average seatbelt and headrest are too high. Seatbelts hit me in the throat unless i use a seatbelt adjuster. This means my seatbelt may not work as well in an accident, my head has less support and my seatbelt could snap my neck. I am glad i have long arms to go with the long legs, and unlike many women, i am not kissing the steering wheel.

I wear my seatbelt 100%. I drive a large, "safe" car. But i still am unsure i will survive a moderate speed accident with any whiplash. Maybe the airbag will protect me?

I cannot drive a small car. My legs are too long and like most guys, it requires pretzelling to drive many small cars. And the relative lowness makes my short torso issue even worse.

Btw, as a first responder, i was always amazed how well cars protect occupants, even at highway speeds. Cars have gotten safer.

 

[ILLYRIAN]

A good quality seat belt would require a good fixture to be fixed to on the body of the car, quality seat mountings and a proper lock beside the inside of the seat.

 

[Ethan Reigns]

There are added seat cushions you can get to solve the problem of long legs forcing you to sit too low. Or you can add additional cushioning to the existing foam rubber in the seat. There is an opposite problem of tall people in Miata's doing a foamectomy - taking off the seat cover and slicing an inch or two of foam off the seat so you can sit lower. This is best done with an electric carving knife.

 

[DeepBlueJoy]

There are added seat cushions you can get to solve the problem of long legs forcing you to sit too low. Or you can add additional cushioning to the existing foam rubber in the seat. There is an opposite problem of tall people in Miata's doing a foamectomy - taking off the seat cover and slicing an inch or two of foam off the seat so you can sit lower. This is best done with an electric carving knife.

I think it would be nice if HALF THE DRIVERS (women) were able to have comfortable, safe seats designed with them in mind without sturm and drang.

Men dont try to sit in child seats. Childen have seats with them in mind. Women should have more options, particularly in driver seats. It is a safety matter. If women are injured in small cars, it may be because they are buying what fits, not that they prefer small, unsafe cars.

My seat raises and that is helpful, but not all seats do. I chose the best fit I could find.

Added cushioning i do use in long trips, but it tends to create pressure spots, which leads to numbness.

Extra tall people do have a problem in micro cars, but so do even some average people with long legs. I would not drive a car i had to hack into. I think that might compromise safety in an accident.

 

[DeadlyDuo]

I would not drive a car i had to hack into. I think that might compromise safety in an accident.

Plus insurance wouldn't pay out if you had an accident and got injured. They'd say that the car had been tampered with and thus the safety compromised.

 

[Ethan Reigns]

You don't have to hack into anything. My wife got a seat cushion wedge for a chair she has at home because of the lack of support at the back of the seat. They are sold widely and are used for cars as well. I know one girl who is 4'8" who uses one, so it's not impossible to get a good fit.

The foamectomy I mentioned for tall people may be hacking into a car but it does not compromise safety and insurers have never taken a close look at any car after an accident. We have accident reporting stations that write accident reports and the insurers trust them to get all the details. Insurers are not interested in safety - most insurers will not allow you to install a roll bar or roll cage into a convertible because they consider it "racing equipment".