Volvos are safe for two reasons. First, they do a great job of safety engineering and second, they tell you that they did a great job of safety engineering. Unfortunately, Porsche is a small company and has a laundry list of praiseworthy attributes. Porsche has too many virtues to consider promoting the advent of a crash. However, Porsche is second to none in passive safety.
Passive safety is defined as what the vehicle does to protect its occupants after becoming involved in an accident. From Porsche’s earliest days, safety has been a top priority. For those old enough to remember, when involved in front end collisions, automobiles used to wreak havoc on their drivers. The steering column ran straight back to the steering wheel and would force the steering wheel into the driver.
When Porsche entered Formula 2 racing, it took its 550 spyder and moved the driver’s seat from the left to the center of the vehicle. Instead of reengineering the entire steering mechanism, they added two universal joints to reposition the steering wheel. It did not take long to realize that the steering wheel was no longer a threat. This discovery was immediately shared with the entire automotive industry. A design flaw had been eliminated to the benefit of all drivers.
While the previously mentioned small company had its disadvantages, being small meant the engineers knew the drivers of the racing cars. Being personally involved, the engineers felt personally responsible for the drivers’ safety. At most automobile manufacturers there is a trickle down of technology from racing to production. To quote the late, great Bob Snodgrass of Brumos Porsche, “At Porsche it’s a flood.” The drivers’ safety has always been paramount with Porsche engineers.
As early as the mid 60’s Porsche was crash testing both racing and production cars. A crane would lift a Porsche and drop it simulating a crash. Today’s methods are much more sophisticated than running into a wall at 30 mph. It became apparent that the more likely scenario of a front-end collision would be offset rather than head on. Vehicles are also tested for side and rear end collisions.
CAD, computer assisted design, allows for selection of different metals to achieve the lightest possible weight (fuel economy) while achieving the greatest possible strength. CAD also allows for crash testing before ever building the vehicle, much more effective than crashing expensive Porsches over and over.
Look at Porsche’s least expensive 2 seat sports cars. That small passenger compart has 8 airbags: steering wheel, dashboard, 2 knee bags, side head bags in the doors, and thorax airbags are stored in the seatbacks. Why in the seat? By placing the thorax air bag, part of Porsche’s occupant side impact protection (POSIP), in the seat, it is always in the proper position to afford optimal protection.
Not only are there head bags in the door and thorax bags in the seats for side protection, look at the distance from the outer edge of the door to where the driver or occupant sit. Now look at the perceived competitors. The margin of safety is obvious.
Safety-cell construction utilizes a very rigid structure designed to prevent intrusion into the passenger compartment. The rest of the vehicle is expendable and designed to absorb energy at a constant rate limiting the amount of energy subjected to the occupants. If the entire vehicle were rigid, the vehicle would stay intact, but the occupants would be absorbing all the energy of the sudden stop.
Porsche utilizes different materials and varies the thickness of the metal (tailored blanks) to facilitate energy absorption. This contributes to the vehicle’s being expendable not the occupants.
Porsche’s cabriolet designs either have fixed rollover bars (Boxster) or pop-up rollover bars (911). Look at the angle of the roll bars. They are designed to permit the vehicle to continue rolling to afford the best chance of landing right side up. If a roll bar is squared off, it may prevent the vehicle from returning to the preferred shiny side up position.
Who would put a fuel tank in the front end? Porsche’s sports cars place the fuel tank up front. Weight distribution with a full or empty tank should have as little effect on handling as possible. The critical matter is the immediate surrounding area and how it protects the fuel tank. Another consideration is the flame resistance of the tank. Does the saying, “No stone unturned,” ring a bell. All you need to know is that your Porsche is designed to sacrifice itself while defending you.
Like the old saying, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight.” A larger vehicle is not necessarily a safer vehicle. Porsche engineering is and always has been at the leading edge of vehicle safety. Safety demands the best possible solutions for you and loved ones.