Cars are HUGE now..

[205ash 9 1 Cars]

My teeeeeny 205 faced up with my 208 GTI 30th....

 

 

 

 

No wonder modern hot hatches need 200+BHP to feel like they are moving!

 

 

Ash

[SootySport 23]

Architects are still designing new houses with 7ft wide garage doors, so no wonder people don’t garage their motors  anymore.  

[Leslie green 109]

it's mad the difference when you see them up close ,parking spaces are still as tiny as ever though !

[davemar 16]

A lot of it has to do with collision safety for the occupants and also anyone who decides to stand in front of a moving car (so they bounce off rather than get bashed too much). However, the downside is that visibility is much worse in modern cars, so I think avoid collisions is harder now than in older cars. There's such a difference sitting in the 205 when you can see everything compared to a modern car with massive pillars and tiny windows with so many blind spots.

I wonder if the balance has gone too far in terms of occupant safety versus reducing the probability of having an accident.

 

[Leslie green 109]

Deaths in crashes have dropped a lot since the 205 era So can't really complain . Crash a 205 into a modern car and you will need cutting out to check your dental records to identify you  lol.

[205ash 9 1 Cars]

23 hours ago, davemar said:

A lot of it has to do with collision safety for the occupants and also anyone who decides to stand in front of a moving car (so they bounce off rather than get bashed too much). However, the downside is that visibility is much worse in modern cars, so I think avoid collisions is harder now than in older cars. There's such a difference sitting in the 205 when you can see everything compared to a modern car with massive pillars and tiny windows with so many blind spots.

I wonder if the balance has gone too far in terms of occupant safety versus reducing the probability of having an accident.

 

I agree the visibility in the 205 is insane compared to the 208 you can see absolutely everything around you. Its scary though when you pull the interior trim panels off and you have little more than a sheet of metal between you and whatever could be coming sideways into you. I don't want to end up starting an argument here but I think you would generally have a better chance of walking away after rolling a standard 208 than a fully FIA caged up 205 race car, car safety now would be unthinkable even 15 years ago let alone 30

[Telf 224 2 Cars]

On 12/14/2020 at 4:05 AM, Leslie green said:

. Crash a 205 into a modern car and you will need cutting out to check your dental records to identify you

I've had 3 crashes in a 205.

 

1 into the back of a 4x4 . Made a mess but fixable.  No drama.

2. Side swiped by a BMW which distorted the floor pan. Write off.

3. Head on smash with a stationary car parked on a single carriageway road with its lights off at night.. quite a surprise! That i hobbled away from but the car was detonated in a 50m blast zone . So 205 crash ok (in my experience) always looks bad on the NCAP tests but they are absolute worse case scenarios. Real crashes are much more dynamic..unless you hit a bridge support head on , then I'd not rate anyones chances in a 205.

[Leslie green 109]

On 12/18/2020 at 10:40 PM, Telf said:

I've had 3 crashes in a 205.

 

1 into the back of a 4x4 . Made a mess but fixable.  No drama.

2. Side swiped by a BMW which distorted the floor pan. Write off.

3. Head on smash with a stationary car parked on a single carriageway road with its lights off at night.. quite a surprise! That i hobbled away from but the car was detonated in a 50m blast zone . So 205 crash ok (in my experience) always looks bad on the NCAP tests but they are absolute worse case scenarios. Real crashes are much more dynamic..unless you hit a bridge support head on , then I'd not rate anyones chances in a 205.

Crashing into a stationary car the forces are much less , have watched a few head-on type crash tests between modern cars and old cars and basically the passenger cell in the new car will not bend but the old car doesn't have a safety cell so the passenger compartment will fold but yes I agree its all in when you hit and how much it gives or more importantly bounce off to reduce the forces .

Deaths from car crashes have reduced massively over the decades as each new safety feature was introduced  as cars evolved , eg seat belts , abs , airbags , safety cells ,crumple zones etc, it sure wasn't because driving standards improved , quite the opposite id say lol

 

Edited December 27, 2020 by Leslie green

[lagonda 42]

Always have trouble finding the CTi in the hypermarche car park after a shopping trip, masked by what I term pigwagons.