GM's Deadly Duo

Chevrolet introduced its sporty Camaro in the fall of 1966 as General Motors' entry in the race to entice America's emerging youth market away from Ford's overnight success, the Mustang.  Thirty-five years and four design generations later, the Camaro and its Pontiac companion, the Firebird, have emerged as undisputed champions in at least one category:  they are the deadliest cars on the road.

Insurance industry researchers figure that 89 persons were killed per "million registered vehicle years" from 1995 through 1998, but that for the Camaro, the rate was well over three times higher – 308 per million.  The Camaro convertible and Firebird did not lag far behind.  Together, these three models make up what GM calls its F-Cars.

The fatality data published in an August 2000 "Driver Death Rates Status Report" by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), are based on a survey by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) of crash death records for 156 passenger vehicle models.  Sports cars, particularly GM's, led the field in fatalities.

"This has been true model year after model year," the Institute reported, noting that its 1997 survey had also showed the Camaro leading all passenger cars in the rate at which occupants and drivers were killed from 1992 through 1996.  The carnage is the offspring of the marriage of poor crash design with the nation's most at-risk motorists.

Ejection Hatches

A major GM selling-point from 1982 to 1992 was the F-Car's large glass hatch-back that projects over the back seat of the car, adding to its sporty appearance. The design presents a special hazard.  In collisions, this large sheet of glass is likely to break or pop out of its frame, providing a ready hatch through which to eject anyone not securely belted in the seat.  This is especially hazardous to children and in cars equipped with only lap belts.

Why F-Cars Are So Deadly

On its own web site, GM touts the importance of having a "safety cage" to protect the driver and passengers in a collision.  This "cage" consists of pillars, roof, and side-door beams made of high-strength reinforced steel, designed to remain crash forces intact and protected from vehicles' front and rear "crumple zones." during a collision.

Ironically, GM's F-Cars--known as "muscle cars"--have no such safety cage.  The vehicles' "unibody" design lacks structural integrity.  The cars are weak where even GM advertises they most need to be strong.  Actually, GM's "muscle cars" are dangerously flabby.  The unibody construction does not resist torquing, bending and twisting, and does not prevent hazards from penetrating the passenger compartment.  Most deficient of all are the so-called T-Top convertibles models.  When major sections of the roof are removed, the car loses an important element of its "cage" structure and the passenger compartment itself becomes a "crumple zone."

Marketing Death to Young Drivers

General Motors not only created the deadliest cars on the road, but directly markets them to drivers in the age groups that have the nation's highest fatality rates – those 16 to 20, 21 to 24, and 25 to 34, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's "Traffic Safety Facts 1999." GM has promoted the Camaro and Firebird to these young drivers for three and a half decades with advertising appeals that virtually challenged them with the lure of the high-stakes hazard:

•	"This is the spirited way to challenge the Road...Just ask the kid who owns one!"
•	"Make the earth move"
•	"Here's the shape that turns heads and quickens heartbeats."
•	"A legend that can make you look good, even when it's standing still."

Designed To Kill

Combining the highest risk population with the highest risk cars is a formula for death.  Given the combination, it is little wonder that GM's F-Cars are the most efficient killers on America's roads, yet it is unlikely that their hazardous designs will be removed from the marketplace or that the roadway carnage will be reduced unless and until the marketplace or federal regulators force auto-makers to take such steps.

(03/08/01)