Why reinvent the wheel! Our friends at carseatblog.com have done a great job summing up the basics of this issue. We will be following with points more specific to you in the coming days.
"The big news story of the moment comes to us courtesy of the Chicago Tribune. As you have probably seen by now, they ran a story on Saturday, February 28 titled Car Seat Tests Reveal “Flaws”.
So, is this overblown, sensationalistic journalism meant to sell more newspapers or is this a real ”Houston - we have a problem” issue? Let’s take a look at what we do know at the moment:
As part of a research project, infant seats with dummies were secured in the back seats of vehicles that were crash tested as part of the NCAP program. NCAP stands for New Car Assessment Program. If you’ve heard of “government 5-star ratings,” then you know NCAP. NCAP is part of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The purpose of this New Car Assessment Program is to provide consumers with vehicle safety information, primarily front and side crash rating results, to aid consumers in their vehicle purchase decisions. The rating results utilize a star system from 1 to 5 stars, with 5 being the highest.
For frontal crash ratings, dummies representing an average-sized adult are placed in driver and front passenger seats and secured with the vehicle’s seat belts. Vehicles are crashed into a fixed barrier at 35 mph, which is equivalent to a head-on collision between two similar vehicles (vehicles from the same weight class) each moving at 35 mph. Frontal star ratings indicate the chance of a serious head and chest injury to the driver and right front seat passenger. A serious injury is defined as one requiring immediate hospitalization and may be life threatening...." More
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