lower rollover rating

[motif]

just wonder why all those full frame, real off road truck like 4runner, FJ, hummer etc have lower rollover rating then car based e.g rav4 or highlander - shouldn't be the opposite??? I mean they have heavy frame on the bottom right? besides what else like off road vehicle should be rollover resistant???

I'm planning to buy 4runner soon but that gives me second thoughts. How safe 4runner is in this regards?

safecar.gov

 

[G.I.G.]

I don't know the specific answer to your question, however, today's SUV's are much less prone to rollover than those made just a decade or two ago.

There was a big scare in the 90's regarding Suzuki Samurai's, Geo Trackers, etc. (the small, high, two-door "SUV's") being very prone to rollover but most modern SUV's have lower, wider, longer stances and are less likely to rollover. You can roll just about any car if you are not careful and out of the rollover accidents I've seen in my life, I would say just as many of them were regular passenger cars. Does an SUV or any other higher clearance car or truck have more likelihood of rolling over? Sure. But I would say the benefits of having a larger, stronger, safer vehicle outweigh the marginal rollover risk. Just my opinion, of course.

 

[peter78]

Your link did not seem to work:

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SUV's with a frame tend to have higher ground clearance. The car based SUV's are lower to the ground, also not quite as tall. Also, the third generation model is pretty narrow and has a shorter wheel base. The 4th gen. should be rated better for a roll over. When you get in a 4Runner, the sun visor has a warning about roll overs, it is hard to miss.

I notice this is your first post, if you are considering a 4Runner and are concerned about roll over, I would suggest getting one with VSC, (vehicle skid control). I think VSC can be really helpful in a 4Runner. The first year for VSC is 2001.

 

[motif]

well, I had accident with rollover in passenger car so I know it's not really that hard to put car into a roll. (granted it was during amateur car racing)
I just don't understand how come car designed to go off road where you have uneven road, hills, bumps etc all the time
is lower rollover rating then car designed for road only.

p.s.
I fixed link for the main site, longer link somehow doesn't work.

 

[G.I.G.]

I just don't understand how come car designed to go off road where you have uneven road, hills, bumps etc all the time
is lower rollover rating then car designed for road only.

I think we're talking about two different things here.

Most on-road SUV rollovers are the result of hard steering maneuvers at high speeds or over-correcting when going into a skid. Off-road, you are typically driving very slow (5-10mph in most cases) and you are typically not taking hard, fast turns. You would be amazed at how steep of an angle you can drive accross without rolling over an SUV. I would say 45 degree angle is possible but not advisable.

Unfortunately with the laws of physics, you cannot have a high ground clearance vehicle with the center of gravity of a small passenger car. So, you need to determine what works best for you. I think it would be highly unlikely that you would flip a 4R under even extreme driving conditions, but yes, a 4Runner is more likely to flip than a Honda Civic. With that said, you can't take a Honda Civic off-roading nor does it provide the pound-per-pound crash safety that the 4Runner provides. It's up to you to determine what is a better fit for you and your driving habits.

 

[SubSonic]

What G.I.G. says is correct. Toyota knows that you can take it easy off road and get to some serious angles with the 4Runner and not roll it over, because you can disable the rollover side curtain airbags in order to prevent accidental deployment while off-roading.

I've driven tall trucks and SUVs most of my life (one of my first vehicles was a 1977 Ramcharger). My last few have been a '98 Blazer, '03 Trailblazer (which I still own as a work truck) and my current '08 4Runner. I can say that I've never felt worried about a rollover 99% of the time. That 1% has been in off-road situations...even then they weren't that scary and we never tipped over. Now, if you go to trying double lane-change maneuvers @ 110 mph or something, you're on your own. That's why rollover side curtain airbags exist I guess.

 

[peter78]

well, I had accident with rollover in passenger car so I know it's not really that hard to put car into a roll. (granted it was during amateur car racing)
I just don't understand how come car designed to go off road where you have uneven road, hills, bumps etc all the time
is lower rollover rating then car designed for road only.

p.s.
I fixed link for the main site, longer link somehow doesn't work.

When you crawl under a 4Runner you can understand what is going on. First off, you can crawl ounder the rig without a lift. You see the engine up high, then the transmission is up high tucked up in a tunnel. On my Acura Integra, I can hardly get my arm under the car, under the engine is the transaxle, or if you like the transmission. I pick the Acura, becasue I could take that into a curve at high speed, down shift and NOT touch the brakes. Oh, boy what fun.

Now, with the 4Runner, I go camping, crossing creeks, towing if I need to and at Christmas time I park over a curb in the mud to go shopping. Oh boy, what fun.

It just depends on how you define "fun".

 

[motif]

I'm just afraid of situation when front tire blow up at highway speed and car will rollover.

 

[Annoyed]

What G.I.G. said is pretty much the end of this discussion, as far as rational thought goes.

"Unfortunately with the laws of physics, you cannot have a high ground clearance vehicle with the center of gravity of a small passenger car."

The only possible way to change this would be to widen the vehicle, but then it wouldn't fit into std. lanes.

So, you pays your money, and you picks your poison. Myself, I'll accept the risk of a rollover if I do something stupid, or can't get out of someone else doing something stupid and hitting me from the side for the protection of a larger, heavier vehicle, and the added versatility that the T4R gives.

However, there is still room for irrational thought on the subject.

To some degree, the image of dangerous, rollover prone SUV's has been promoted by the environmental whack jobs & other fans of small cars.

These people prefer to drive tiny little skateboards. However, they are very much aware that in a collision with a larger, heavier vehicle, they are likely dead. So, they would prefer that everyone drive the tiny cars that they themselves prefer. They have used the slightly increased chance of a rollover to try to scare people off from buying larger vehicles, just as they have tried to use taxation and other forces of government to force other people to drive what they would prefer they drive.

If any such people are reading this. If you choose to drive a skateboard, that is perfectly fine with me. It's not my right to tell you what to drive. But don't you dare presume to tell me what I should drive, or try to have the government force me to drive what you think I should.

 

[4boer]

I'm just afraid of situation when front tire blow up at highway speed and car will rollover.

I read up on the roll over issue big time last year. Get the curtain air bags. World of difference in surviving a SUV rollover wreck. Having said that I am very impressed by how my T4R handles. No real concern taking off ramps over the posted limit.

Make sure you have good tires and of course your TPMS will help. BTW I've seen many cars upside down on the freeways. If your looking for no-risk at all I think the SW corner of the basement is best:biggrin2:

 

[G.I.G.]

To some degree, the image of dangerous, rollover prone SUV's has been promoted by the environmental whack jobs & other fans of small cars.

These people prefer to drive tiny little skateboards. However, they are very much aware that in a collision with a larger, heavier vehicle, they are likely dead. So, they would prefer that everyone drive the tiny cars that they themselves prefer. They have used the slightly increased chance of a rollover to try to scare people off from buying larger vehicles, just as they have tried to use taxation and other forces of government to force other people to drive what they would prefer they drive.

If any such people are reading this. If you choose to drive a skateboard, that is perfectly fine with me. It's not my right to tell you what to drive. But don't you dare presume to tell me what I should drive, or try to have the government force me to drive what you think I should.

Not to make a political debate out of this, but I think Annoyed is spot on. There is a negative stigma surrounding SUV's from the left, and rollover risk is just one way they try to scare people into driving Prii (plural for "Prius", LOL). Again, rollover risk of SUV's and trucks has been greatly reduced over the last decade with wider wheel bases, vehicle stability control, lower ground clearances (look at the ground clearance difference between a 3rd and 4th gen 4Runner), ABS, etc. When I get out on the road with a million other dumb a$$ drivers, rolling over is the least of my concerns.

On a side note, I read a funny quote a while ago....."Why is it the same people that can't tell me if it is going to rain on Friday are the same people that tell me that the polar ice caps are going to melt in 10 years if I don't start driving a Prius."

Lastly, driving ability and knowing what to do in certain situations is more important than what you drive. If you live in deer, elk, cow, fill-in-the-blank country, you should know that you should always hit the animal that runs out in front of you if you can't stop in time, especially if you are driving at highway speeds. Would you want to flip your car over a cliff or hit a tree head-on because you want to save Bambi??? I wouldn't! The only exception to this would be a moose or a large bull elk (almost hit one driving back from a CU game last year). Also, if someone in front of you slams on their brakes and you can't stop, in most cases you should brake as hard as you can and rear-end them rather than swerving and risking a rollover or risking collateral damage (the pedestrian walking down the street, etc.). I'd rather get in a fender-bender than go auguring off the road hitting God knows what because I swerved to avoid a fender bender.

Long story short, flipping a 4R should be the least of your concerns when looking at vehicle safety IMO.

 

[Arcking]

The only exception to this would be a mouse or a large bull elk...

:

 

[G.I.G.]

:

Ha, good catch. Edit made....changed "mouse" to "moose". LMAO :lmao:

 

[Annoyed]

Not to make a political debate out of this, <SNIP>

I don't really like starting political debates either, but the fact of the matter is that unless we who enjoy the freedom of choice in what we drive start making a stink, we're going to have our choice in what to drive taken away from us. We're going to drive what they want us to drive.

What do you think this cap & tax scheme the current administration is trying to do will do to fuel prices? What about the new CAFE standards? Particularly now that the government is going to have a controlling interest in GM & Chrysler?

If people don't wake up and wean themselves from the felgercarb that the left is pouring down their throats, one day, they're going to find they have no choice in what they drive, if they are allowed to drive at all.

You scoff? Look what happened to the muscle car industry in the late 60's when a combination of insurance & government interests decided that those type cars weren't something that they wanted Americans to be driving.

[EDIT] (had to get gas today, and the ethanol content sticker on the pump reminded me of this)

And as a more current example, look at the deterioration of gasoline with the addition oxygenation agents. Oxygenated gasoline at the very least has a lower energy density causing lower fuel economy and depending on the additive used can actually be harmful to engines & fuel systems.

Alot of states are requiring the use of this poor quality gas based on nothing more than the unproven & unprovable assertions of the environmental lobbies, whose views go unchallenged by the major media outlets.

 

[BlairB]

If you live in deer, elk, cow, fill-in-the-blank country, you should know that you should always hit the animal that runs out in front of you if you can't stop in time, especially if you are driving at highway speeds. Would you want to flip your car over a cliff or hit a tree head-on because you want to save Bambi??? I wouldn't! The only exception to this would be a moose or a large bull elk (almost hit one driving back from a CU game last year). .

:iagree: :iagree: :iagree: So many people die every year trying to say an animals life that wanders on to the road. I love animals, but you need to put your own safety first.

 

[HB 4X4]

:iagree: :iagree: :iagree: So many people die every year trying to say an animals life that wanders on to the road. I love animals, but you need to put your own safety first.

Ah, so that's why you turned hundreds of mice into road kill at Gorman. Safety first.