Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear

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Fri 21 Oct 2011 19:00
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Bobbin Threadbare

www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=64966

What a waste of a Mk I Focus. Big smash at 2'30" ish if you don't want to look at that presenter's annoying little beard.

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Sat 22 Oct 2011 14:34
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Chris M

Agree about the annoying presenter. Don't agree about wasting the car. I believe had the test been carried out at 70 - 80 mph it would have been an eye opener for all those driving around in 10 year old cars - just the sort of car young drivers own. I think most of us would assume family hatches of that age would still have fairly reasonable crash safety, but at motorway speeds you would stand little chance hitting a fairly imoveable object.

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Sat 22 Oct 2011 15:14
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - jamie745

Having said that accidents are quite rare on motorways and only accounted for 6% of the road death toll last year (despite them being the most dense and congested in Europe) but you're right that its remarkable how quickly safety ratings have improved. Ten years ago if you got a 2 star safety rating that was bang on average. The mk2 Mondeo (still a common car on our roads) only has a 2 star rating, the original Peugeot 406 was only a 2 star despite being quite a chunky car. The surprising bit is things like the Discovery and Freelander which you'd expect to be very safe only 7 odd years ago posted 3 star ratings and were surprisingly poor.

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Sat 22 Oct 2011 15:35
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Chris M

When I said motorway speeds I wasn't really thinking of accidents on motorways. Large lumps of concrete aren't common on motorways are they, but motorway speeds are quite easily achieved on single carriageway (60mph) A roads where there are plenty of very solid things to hit. Buildings and bridges have armco on motorways which tend to deflect errant vehicles, but not so frequently on country A roads. Trees put up quite a fight too.

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Sat 22 Oct 2011 16:04
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - jamie745

I dont know about you but i was always told by my driving instructor to stay on the road and not to crash into trees. Thats generally the best route to take.

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Sat 22 Oct 2011 23:18
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - mss1tw

That ****ing hair...

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 00:21
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Ben 10

"Large lumps of concrete aren't common on motorways are they,"

Well what are the bridges, many central barriers and overhead intersections made off then?Many lorries and cars hit these quite regular. I saw one happen once on the M1. The nodding off driver in the middle of the night has less other vehicles to hit and more chance of hitting a sign or large unmoveable piece of concrete more than you think.

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 01:02
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - colinh

Two car travelling at 60mph on a single carriageway in opposite directions, have a closing speed of 120mph - so not so unrealistic

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 01:18
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - jamie745

I suppose if we're being technical its not 120mph really because you'd think both parties wouldve hit the brake before the collision and would be slowing down upon impact.

Still undesirable though.

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 01:22
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Ethan Edwards

Risk is relative. I've been on the M25 shoulder to wheel with juggernauts on a bike at speed. I've also done three figures on bikes on A roads. I've filtered between traffic and had people swap lanes on me. Ridden big bikes for years with few incidents and only a couple of broken bones.

Very little in a car could be as dangerous so sorry just not that bothered. If it happens...make it quick and terminal.. It's all a lottery anyway isn't it.

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 16:48
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - 832ark

>>Two car travelling at 60mph on a single carriageway in opposite directions, have a >>closing speed of 120mph - so not so unrealistic

Unfortunately not the same thing at all. The video shows what would happen in a head on collision between two cars each doing 120mph

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 03:41
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - OG

Armco barriers will only stop a car or light van doing maybe 40 mph. They don't really represent much of an obstacle to an HGV. A company I worked for had it's lorry written off after an artic jack-knifed in the snow, it crossed all six lanes of the motorway and sliced through the central reservation as if it wasn't there. Neither driver was hurt.

Five people were killed not far from me a few years ago when, according to witnesses, one car with four young men in it simply drifted across the road into the path of another vehicle. Both were reckoned to be doing 50-60 mph but neither car was recognisable afterwards. Tests showed the driver was quite sober and the coroner could only assume he'd been distracted by his passengers. The road was quite dry at the time and visibility perfect.

Edited by OG on 24/10/2011 at 03:42

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 18:48
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Pyranha

The presenter says it shows what would happen in a head on between 2 cars both doing 120mph, which may well be true but is so unlikely as to be pointless showing us.

What he probably meant is that a 120mph impact is what you get in a head on between 2 cars each doing 60mph, but this does not illustrate that, because this ignores the other car's mass and crumpling - if you are in the heavier, more solid car, you may come out of the crash better than the person in the lighter tinnier car. Of course, you may die in such a crash, but that's hardly news.

Finally the chances of a 60+60 head on are so remote as to make this demonstration pointless - generally braking and steering will affect the actual impact speeds or forces. Perhaps it would be more useful to show the results of real crashes . . .

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 19:47
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - Bobbin Threadbare

A wee bit of physics; Pyranha is right in saying that a more 'solid' car will come off better. This isn't just about velocity, it's also about mass, therefore it's the momentum you have to consider:

m_1 x v_1 = m_2 x v_2

Law of Conservation of Momentum

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 21:12
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - 832ark

>What he probably meant is that a 120mph impact is what you get in a head on between >2 cars each doing 60mph, but this does not illustrate that, because this ignores the >other car's mass and crumpling - if you are in the heavier, more solid car, you may come >out of the crash better than the person in the lighter tinnier car. Of course, you may die in >such a crash, but that's hardly news.

What it demonstrates is what happens when two cars of equal mass both travelling at 120mph crash head on. You could replace the concrete block with another focus doing 120mph and get the same result. (Although this would be very difficult in practice to get a perfectly square hit)

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Mon 24 Oct 2011 21:35
Forc Focus Smash from 5th Gear - RicardoB

Agree re the annoying presenter. But then, most of them are.

Fairly obvious what would happen to a car hitting a block at that speed.

Another point re head on two cars doing 60, is that as well as potential braking motion, you'd think that there would be some attempt at taking avoiding action, unless both drivers had dozed off, so it's unlikely that a direct head on happens - more like a offside to offside, which if of course would have even more of a devasting affect on the vehicles and occupants.

But moving on, what a depressing subject!

And the comment from the biker above - are you one of the masses who basically ruin spring, summer and early autumn weekends of peace and tranquility for those who live or visit within a mile or two of biker routes in the country? i.e. the noise - not the speed - that's your choice to break the law and put yourself at considerable risk, but if you want to kill yourself that way, please do it without the big cans.

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