Obama administration says fuel economy targets can be met without hurting safety. NHTSA study shows reducing heavy truck weight does help with safety...
Detroit,MICH,USA -Automotive News, by Neil Roland -May 12, 2011: ... Automakers asking government officials to reconsider matter... Say they're already introducing safety features that add vehicle weight. And adding weight likely to affect fuel economy. Weight not only means to improve fuel economy... Officials say vehicles can be safer and get better fuel economy. NHTSA obligated to consider safety implications of new fuel economy standards. That's due to fewer deaths among occupants in light vehicles during accident... The government plans to update its 2010 safety study by September and has commissioned new research to be completed before final CAFE rules are issued in the summer of 2012, a NHTSA spokeswoman said... A number of outside studies support NHTSA's findings on weight cuts in heavier vehicles... A 2009 study by JP Research in Mountain View, Calif., found reducing light trucks by 100 pounds would result in a 2.1 percent decrease in deaths in truck-to-car crashes... Conversely, the study, performed for the Detroit 3, also found a 3.4 percent increase in fatalities when passenger cars were reduced by 100 pounds... Data compiled by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, funded by auto insurers, also support NHTSA's approach, said Adrian Lund, the institute's president... (Image from truckinjurylawyerblog: Pileup truck and cars)
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