Quick Recap:

1. These results were released today by the NHTSA. They're for Side Impact only (no frontal results yet).

2. The RX-8 was rated in the four-door sedan category, and got 4 stars out of 5 for both front and rear passengers/driver, which means there's 6% to 10% chance of serious injury (life threatening) in a similar crash.
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/NCAP/Cars/3005.html

3. The Mazda3 was also tested, and didnt do so hot. 4 stars out of 5 for frontal, and 3 out of 5 for side impact
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/NCAP/Cars/3023.html

and here's a recap article by the AP:
http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosins...tos-110210.htm

 

but what does it all meeeaannn Brain?

 

It means that the Freestyle doors work as designed!

It's interesting that the Mazda 3 has a B pillar and the 8 does not but the 8 performed better than the traditional four door!

 

I think it's even more interesting that the RX8 performed better than the BMW 3 series in a side impact for front passengers! Of course the Bimmer got 5 stars for the rear passenger, but the front passenger rating is 3 stars with a "high likelihood of pelvic injury".

Says a lot about the engineering that went into the 8's structure.

Here's a link to the results.

-Eric

 

hey, thanks for the information! have been waiting for this for a long time.

 

Good post. I just e-mailed NHTSA yesterday and got this response. I guess they can't release the frontal results until the airbag problem is addressed.

If you own an RX-8, please note the AIRBAG RECALL!

============================================
NHTSA e-mail as of 4/1/04:

We recently tested the RX-8 but cannot release the results.

As a result of our frontal NCAP test, Mazda issued a recall on some airbags:

Make: MAZDA
Model: RX8
Year: 2004
Recall Number: 04V074000
Summary:
AS A RESULT OF AN NCAP TEST, CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES ARE BEING RECALLED FOR IMPROPERLY WIRED FRONT PASSENGER SEAT AIR BAGS.
Consequence:
THE AIR BAG WILL NOT PROVIDE ADEQUATE PROTECTION WHEN THE VEHICLE IS INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL CRASH.
Remedy:
DEALERS WILL INSTALL A NEW WIRING HARNESS IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT AIR BAG SYSTEM. OWNER NOTIFICATION IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING FEBRUARY 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT MAZDA AT 1-800-222-5500.
Notes:
MAZDA RECALL NO. 1604B-B. CUSTOMERS CAN ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S AUTO SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).

We implore owners of this vehicle to investigate whether they are eligible for this recall and prospective purchasers to ascertain whether the problem has been fixed on their new automobiles.

We are planning on re-testing the vehicle in April.


Thank you for your interest.
NCAP
1-888-DASH-2-DOT
www.safercar.gov

 

Also regarding crash testing - apparently there is a new rear impact test mandated for 2005. Happily, the RX-8 is designed with this test in mind, which explains in part why the rear seats don't fold down (apparently added structural strength). There was an article that mentioned this on the C&D website - though I don't have the link handy. So next year we should hopefully see good results from the rear impact test as well.

 

yeah i think i'll take passenger safety over fold-down rear seats... :p

 

Hmm. 4 stars on the side impact of both sides. Good going Mazda.

FYI the BMW 3 series has a 3 star on the driver side with pelvic injury most likely.

Now, I hope it gets 5 stars on the frontal and rear. Several Asian cars have not fared well on the rear test - G35 cars for example - at least as it was reported and shown on the TV.

 

Rear crash test results are going to be interesting. Anyone know what spped the impact is gong to be? There's not a whole lot of distance or mass between the rear bumper and the rear seatback. Wonder if the spare tire kit will help or hurt. The front seat passengers have a lot more structure to the rear. Also, airbags don't assist on a rear impact.

 

I believe 50 or 55 mph. And I think it is a 30% offset (i.e., only 70% of the rear will bear the force of the accident instead of 100%), which makes it a more challenging standard than straight on across the entire back of the vehicle.

 

Another update on the rear impact testing - apparently it is not being performed (at least not yet). Here is the body of an e-mail from NHTSA. Looks like they just copied and pasted their reply from somewhere else, as this is how it was written (verbatim):
===========================================
relatively small percentage of deaths or severe injuries (injuries that would necessitate a person going to the hospital) are associated with rear impacts. Since there is a limited amount of money available for crash testing, the first emphasis is on frontal and side impact.

As a result, we only conduct rear impact testing in conjunction with FMVSS 301, which is our fuel system integrity tetsing. We do not publish the results of our rear impact tests in a public format such as the star ratings we provide for frontal and side impact.

Thank you for your continued interest in our program.

NCAP
www.safercar.gov
1-888-DASH-2-DOT

 

The 8 also has done well with the safety design of the head restraint . . .

http://www.nrma.com.au/pub/nrma/moto...t/sports.shtml

 

Sweet post... thanks.

 

The recent Dateline episode where they test md-size sedans in side impact (IIHS testing) noted a strong collelation to good results when side curtain airbags and side airbags are present. I wonder if the Mazda 3 had the available airbags installed for the testing?

Nice to see good results for the RX-8. Helps to justify taking the little ones on trips in it!

 

Don't know about the Mazda 3, but I do know that the Honda and Camry models without side-airbags did not test well, but when tested with SAB, they got a "Good" rating. So seems like the SAB are really important as Pk14 mentions, particularly the head/curtain bags.

 

the better side airbag is the curtain type which I do not think the RX-8 has





http://www.hwysafety.org/news_releas...3/pr082603.htm

 

I guess the RX-8's side air bags are just for show then :P

 

glad I was wrong

 

Yes, the 8 has you covered very well

 

Yep - curtain is apparently best, since it obviously covers the head which is most critical and least protected by the car's structure. Thorax bag is a nice bonus though.

Good pic by the way. Where did you get that? Looks like there's not a lot there for rear passenger's head though... but I guess enough to get 4 stars from NHTSA.

 

heya, do you remember when was that Dateline aired? Cos I saw one a week or two ago, and it was about a new IIHS test where they simulate an SUV T-bone'ing a mid-size 4 door sedan. (instead of T-bone'ing a vehicle with another from the same class, ie, 4 door sedan on 4 door sedan) the Mazda3 was not included in this test i believe.
http://www.hwysafety.org/news_releas...4/pr041804.htm
This is more severe than previous side impact crash tests because they try to simulate the front-end of an SUV/pickup, and so usually without the side curtain airbag to protect the head of the dummies, their heads typically struck the glass and the grill of the intruding vehicle, while the side curtain airbag cushions and protects the dummies' heads. So without side curtain airbags, and a SUV hits u on the driver side, your head would snap left, hit the grill of the SUV, then bounce way to the right almost hitting the headrest on the passenger seat.

 

Yikes - too scary to even think about - heads bouncing off of the grill of an SUV. I have to say that is one thing that is in the back of my mind now as I think about getting in a sports car again (previously had a Supra and a '79 RX7).

Seems like the side airbags make a tremendous difference though. In fact, in the latest testing you linked to you can see the huge difference between a Camry and Accord with and without SABs. Even so, I have to wonder how well that can protect vs. a vehicle in which your head is above the incoming bumper. Hmm ... I love the 8, but am still not sure (got a wife and kids to consider). We'll see how the IIHS side impact test goes if they do the 8.

I called IIHS and they would not reveal what vehicles were going to be tested next or even if the 8 would be tested. I guess they like to make it a surprise for the media value. They did say the next group of test results would be in June.

 

I wouldnt hold my breath for it, cos they usually test the more popular cars first. I can see them testing SUV on compact sedans, but not on sports cars in the near future.

The thing is....this new IIHS test is SUV on mid-size 4 door sedan crash test.
But if u want "lower bumper side impact on any car", then the NHTSA does that and the first post in this thread already linked to the side impact results for the RX-8.

And on side impact, there are 2 key issues. 1. is how far the frame/B pillar mash into the car (as covered by the IIHS link), and 2. is whether there are side torso/side curtain airbags to protect the body and the head.
Some cars in the IIHS test did poorly eventhough they have SAB because like in the Saturn, the curtain airbags doesnt extend far enough down from the ceiling, so if the driver/passenger are shorter, like a kid or a soccer mom, their head would still hit the glass/grill. Also, from the crash test video shown on Dateline NBC, it shows that when hit with an SUV front end, the glass shatters and sandblasts the face with glass pebbles. But if there's a full length SAB like in the RX-8 shown on that pic above, your face and head is pretty well protected.

From the NHTSA side impact test results on the Camry and Accord, and taking into consideration how they did on the IIHS SUV side impact test, I'd say the RX-8 probably does just as well in the IIHS test as the NHTSA test, because judging from the pic above, the RX-8 have a very tall side curtain airbag and a torso air bag which reduces injuries tremendously while its frame seems to hold up pretty decent in the NHTSA test.

Here are more pics from the IIHS SUV side impact test on an Accord.

Head, meet the Grill!
Face, meet the glass sandblast!

Arrow shows where the face hit the window sill (lower part of dummy's face has yellow grease paint, top has red grease paint.


Now with Side Curtain Airbags.....
Head, meet the pillow!

The red paint spot on the airbag is where the dummy's head hit.

 

Amazing the protection the bags afford. Interesting about the glass on the face. Never thought about it, but makes perfect sense. Wish I had seen the Dateline segment. And I agree with you on all other counts above. I suspect it will be a while before they test the 8, if at all. I think they will be testing the ones where they've already done the frontal offset but for which they don't yet have the side impact. Looks like they try to get a complete set of tests for whatever vehicles they test. Oh well.