This fatal crash in Lahad Datu results in 2 lives lost and a number of persons injured.
The Lahad Datu Police is investigating this accident under Seksyen 41(1) Akta Pengangkutan Jalan (APJ) 1987. When you see a car crumpling (the red car pictured below) in an accident and there is no heavy vehicle or concrete wall in the accident, you start wondering about the quality of the vehicle from the start.
While old cars are often thought of as “tanks” due to their heavy steel frames, they are significantly more dangerous in accidents because they lack modern crumple zones. In a collision, an old car’s rigid body might remain largely intact while transferring the lethal force of the impact directly to the passengers, whereas a modern car is engineered to sacrifice its shiny outer skin/body to absorb that accident impact energy.
It has been documented by accident investigators that most cheaper or older cars might show more extreme deformation because they may lack the advanced, high-strength steel reinforcements in the cabin area found in more expensive, modern vehicles, or they may have shorter, less effective crumple zones.
Meanwhile, most modern car designs, regardless of price, use materials engineered to break in specific ways to dissipate energy in milliseconds.
If you are buying a new car today ….. take note that the “Safety Cell”, which is the main cabin, or passenger compartment, must be constructed from stronger, more rigid steel to prevent it from collapsing. The front and rear ends are designed to be sacrificed to keep this central compartment intact and passengers safe.
Pictures By : Lahad Datu Police
