The boffins have broken down the data from BMW Sauber F1 driver Robert Kubica's crash at the Montreal Grand Prix. If the shunt itself wasn't eye-popping enough, it turns out that Kubica hit the wall nearly head on at 142.6 mph and endured a 75 G impact. And he made it out with nothing more than a slight concussion and a sprained ankle. That's what a survival cell, crash box, HANS system, helmet, and 1,000 pieces of carbon fiber, Kevlar, metal, and honeycomb can do for you when they work perfectly. In a burst of German understatement, the BMW Sauber technical director said they were "very content about the behavior of the chassis as survival cell." Throttle-by-wire is great, but we need a whole lot more of that kind of tech to trickle down ASAP.
[Source: Autosport]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mr. Oak @ Jun 21st 2007 1:35PM
I remember when lots of F1 drivers (Rubens B. leading the charge) were resisting the use of the HANS device. I watched that crash over and over, without the HANS this kid would have been pulled out of that car with a sprained ankle and a broken neck.
Solo Racer @ Jun 21st 2007 2:17PM
Broken neck? He would've been dead before the rescue crew got there. A basal skull fracture is instant.
Crush zones in unit body cars already create a crash cell. Some designs are better than others.
DemaSRV @ Jun 21st 2007 1:36PM
I hope this tech doesn't trickle down! I've had two fender benders and in both there was very little contact yet my car looked much worse. I won't even begin to talk about cost. What happened to the days when a fender bender was just that, a fender bender!
Pouya @ Jun 21st 2007 5:47PM
I'm not sure the reason your fenders are so sensitive to damage is due to safety (e.g., crumple zones) or the fact that it may be a weak fender. Assuming it is the former, look at it this way, would you rather have a bent fender or a bent spine?
Kit @ Jun 21st 2007 1:38PM
75G! Are you kidding me? That is simply incredible. Hat's off to the saftey wizards who are designing this stuff. I'm simply amazed at what we can buld these days.
Mr. Oak @ Jun 21st 2007 1:41PM
On the technology trickle down, don't hold yout breath. Cost of already expensive carbon Fiber is on the rise.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/manufacturing/2007-06-05-carbon-fibers-usat_N.htm
John @ Jun 21st 2007 1:53PM
It'll trickle down when you feel like paying $1,000,000 for your next car.
Solo Racer @ Jun 21st 2007 2:21PM
WRC driver Colin McRae hit a tree in his Ford Focus rally car once while traveling over a 100mph. G forces were also very high. He and his co-driver escaped without serious injury.
Vinay @ Jun 21st 2007 2:57PM
I was sitting at the hairpin when Kubica slammed into that wall and it was one of the scariest things I have ever seen. It's absolutely incredible that these F1 cars are built that safe. There is no question if this happened in a race 10 years ago he would not have survived.
Vinay
http://www.madwhips.com
MK @ Jul 4th 2007 10:52AM
I was also at the hairpin when this crash happened. I thought for sure he was dead! Hats off to the safety crew and doctors at the race. They did a great job getting to him within seconds of the accident.
Also, #17, Ralf hit the wall at Indy with the rear of the car. He suffered broken vertebrae. In that type of accident (reverse impact), the HANS device wouldn't do anything. The simple headrest (among all the other safety devices) saved his life.
Kwyjibo @ Jun 21st 2007 4:54PM
I believe if you look through "record books" you'll find that the highest sustained G force by man was in an F1 crash a few years back.
These cars are built amazingly well.
Steven @ Jun 21st 2007 5:16PM
Well if it helps, here's an article about carbon fibre in Formula One: http://www.f1technical.net/articles/3
Pouya @ Jun 21st 2007 5:46PM
75 Gs!!! Wow! Could you imagine how a force 75 times your body weight would feel!?!? Amazing.
Greg Koenig @ Jun 21st 2007 5:59PM
The issue with road car safety is not just about building the cars better; it is about the fact that 'civilians' would never accept the inconvenience of 4 point harnesses, helmets or HANS devices.
If you mandated those three things on every vehicle built today, you would very nearly eliminate road deaths and spinal injuries. Of course, who is going to want to strap into a car, throw on a helmet and hook up their HANS every time they need to go grocery shopping?
ed @ Jun 21st 2007 7:02PM
Wow, that is amazing. However, I am not entirely clear on what actually experienced 75G - the car itself or the driver. If the car itself experienced 75G, then I suppose it makes sense - all that safety equipment is basically there to prevent the driver from experiencing enough G forces to cause bones to break, cartilage to explode, or soft tissue to bleed.
If the driver's body experienced 75G and survived, that really is something!
As for trickling down to passenger cars, I'm not entirely sure I would want to be confined in the same manner that F1 drivers are. From what I have read, they are basically sitting in tub, molded to their body contours, and move nothing (voluntarily) except their eyes, hands, and feet.
Nick @ Jun 21st 2007 7:23PM
It is a matter of trickle down technology, but what a typical car owner is willing to put up with is also a factor in safety. Undoubtedly, cars could be much safer at a relatively minimal cost if they had full roll cages, HANS systems, five point harnesses and required helmets to operate. Oh, and it's also valuable to be in elite physical condition.
Unfortunately this isn't practical in the real world, so the challenge is to come up with systems that balance convenience with safety, because a car that is a pain to drive is a car that isn't driven and consequently isn't protecting its occupants.
J @ Jun 22nd 2007 8:38AM
keep in mind that any kind of roll cage requires the use of a helmet, otherwise you are putting steel tubing right next to your skull. It would never work, a lot of people consider seatbelts to uncomfortable and most motorcyclist around here don't wear helmets.
Galley @ Jun 22nd 2007 1:12PM
Don't forget that Ralf Schumacher hit a concrete wall dead-on at 198 mph at Indy a few years ago. I think his only injury was a broken ankle.
Johnny C @ Jul 13th 2007 9:35AM
It was specatular, but not as bone-jarring as many.
He hit the wall at a slight angle, and the car kept moving forward. It was not as bad as others. It was a jarring ride after the impact, but the car kept moving as it scrubbed off speed. It is luck that he did not roll several times. The force could have torn him from the cockpit.
The design did what it was supposed to do: keep the driver in an intact "cocoon" and let the rest of the car crumple and break apart.
I don't believe the 75G part. Something was amiss with that computer reading. A 0-100 MPH acceleration of 1 second will register 9G at most.