How many times have we heard an old-timer saying something along the lines of “Back in my day cars were cars made of tough stuff, not these flimsy little tin cans we have today!” As their eyes get misty, they wax on about how solidly built cars of yore were, and how they’d much rather be in a big vintage American boat than anything modern. Those sure were the days.
Yeah, right.
To celebrate 50 years of smashing things, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety put money to mouth, crashing a 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air – about as big and heavy as they come, mind you – into a 2009 Chevrolet Malibu. The results speak for themselves.
Wow. I mean…wow. The windshield on the Malibu doesn’t even crack. The Bel Air, however, folds faster than Superman on laundry day. So you can have your nostalgia. I’ll take the one that’ll save my life.
1 User Responded to " ‘Bu vs. Bel Air: They Sure Don’t Make Them Like They Used To "
I’m about as old a timer as there is, and while I might have thought these old cars were prettier and heavier, they certainly weren’t safer!–or as durable!
They had no seat belts, air bags, crumple zones (exceot maybe the whole car was a big crumple zone in the middle of which you sat.
As for durability, the standard rule of thumb was at 50,000 miles it needed rings and valves, and at 100,000 miles it was ready for the junkyard.
Now I don’t even BUY a car with less than 100,000 miles! My ‘89 Camry had 250,000 miles on it when I sold it, and it was still running just fine–in fact, I still see it around town now and then!
Well, just to let you know, I’m on your side on this one!
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