This Crash Test Of A 30-Year-Old Mitsubishi Shows How Far Car Safety Has Come

Some cars might have been built to last back in the day but there’s no denying that modern vehicles are far safer than they were several decades ago. The advancements made in this domain have saved many lives over the years, so much so that some automakers such as Volvo have a zero-fatality safety pledge. The Australasian New Car Assessment Program has been testing cars since 1993 and has now crashed one of the nine vehicles that were part of the first round of tests 30 years ago.

ANCAP was able to find a second-generation Mitsubishi Magna (TR) and slam it into a moving barrier. At first glance, it might seem that the midsize sedan performed admirably for a 30-year-old car but looks can be deceiving. Dummy injury measurements recorded during the crash test showed the driver would’ve faced a high risk of a fatal skull fracture and brain injury. It’s due to the lack of an airbag inside the steering wheel.

It’s not just that as the driver’s upper and lower legs and pelvis were also prone to serious injuries, along with a moderate chest injury. It gets worse because ANCAP claims the rear passenger of the Mitsubishi would’ve also suffered serious injuries, particularly in the abdomen area after slipping beneath the lap portion of the seatbelt.

ANCAP has shared an excerpt from the original crash testing report from 1993, and predictably, it’s pretty scary: “The Magna driver dummy’s forehead struck the top of the steering wheel rim and its face hit the top of the steering wheel column during the crash. The mid-range head injury criteria indicated brain injury was possible. The top of the passenger dummy’s head struck the dashboard, recording a high-range head injury criteria, indicating that brain injury was likely.”

In 2017, ANCAP highlighted the progress made in car safety by doing a crash test that involved a head-on collision at 40 mph (64 km/h) between a 1998 Toyota Corolla and its 2015 equivalent. If you haven’t seen it, we’ve attached it below.