That's a more complicated issue than you'd think just from comparing the mass and size of the cars.
Old American cars are tanks, true, so you may not be crushed by the crumpling car. But you are at great risk of being killed as you decelerate from 50 MPH to 0 MPH against the dashboard, ricochet around the interior, or fly out into the street.
Look at crash test films of 1960s American cars, for example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siT-SIfOnQw (compliation of GM 1968 tests)
The dummies are practically unrestrained. They fly across the cabin, smash into roofs and pillars, punch their heads through shattering glass, are ejected and dragged, are crushed by collapsing seat backs, and in the last clip, are about to be incinerated.
Modern cars are lighter and smaller, but they are engineered to absorb energy and keep the passenger compartment intact. They are also designed to restrain the occupants in the seats, place airbags between head/torso and the impact, and not burn up.
Here are some Prius crash tests.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAAGeCG_TAU (Prius offset frontal vs SUV)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wg45haoZDg (Prius offset frontal barrier - a barrier is a very severe test, since it doesn't give)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKnGans-JD0 (Prius side impact w/ side airbags; note the interior films - the occupants would survive)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkJ109Z3iOg (Prius offset frontal barrier, side sled, and side pole; good clear slow-motion film)
The dummies are well restrained. Airbags protect their heads and torsos. No-one is ejected, no faces punch through windshields, none of the cars catch fire. Notice this is the case even in the Prius-SUV crash, which might approximate a Prius-'66 Galaxy crash.
If you sent me into a car crash and offered me a '66 Galaxy with a full roll cage, bolted down racing seat, five-point belts, and fire suppression system, I'd take it over the Prius. If you offered me a stock '66 Galaxy, I'd take the Prius, no question. Even if the oncoming car was going to be another '66 Galaxy. (For "Prius", you can substitute almost any compact or larger modern car with airbags.)
Add to that, the dynamic safety of a modern car that helps you avoid accidents (vastly better handling, braking, etc). And there's no contest.
I spent years representing Ford in product liability cases and worked on lots of accidents, mostly involving cars from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. I worked with the accident reconstruction and biomechanics experts, inspected the wrecks, talked with the witnesses, reviewed the autopsies and interviewed the coroners. Cars may have been bigger back in the 60s, but they were definitely not safer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by island911
Point being, even a decades old (with no modern safety devices) peice of American iron, you would NOT want to take one on in a tin-box prius.
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