I thought this was going to turn into an argument on "old cars were built stronger with a full frame (as Mike pointed out) versus these new fangle tin can cars being built with cheap foreign steel and plastic" but it seems it's "the federal government ain't gona tell me I got wear a seat belt, helmet or ......" The point that was being made back then was there were no rules or standards on how cars were built. If left up to the marketing department they would be "function follows form". If left up to the accounting department it would be "use cheaper materials, does it really need to be that strong or good, and why do we have to put even one rear view mirror or a defroster in or on it?" We would probably still have those VW B-pillar flip out turn indicator reflectors or still have to use hand signals to make a turn even in the dead of winter. The S.A.E. produces all of the standards and submits them to NHTSA not the other way around. Yes they produced the seat belt requirements but the STATES are the one that make it a fine if you are not wearing it not the Feds. Without the FMVSS Standards the manufactures could do whatever they want, no seat belts, cable or rod operated brake systems, tiny brake lights mounted anywhere they fit or better yet where they look the most stylish. What the 1966 FMVSS Act did was level the playing field so that EVERYONE played and manufactured by the same rules. No one was going to build a car safer if no one else was going to and without the standards or rules in place that meant that anyone could get in the game and not care how safe or unsafe they had to make it. The Ford Pinto filler neck debacle (as mentioned) was a perfect example of "Well there's no FMVSS safety standard for it so it will be cheaper to settle the claims for injuries or deaths then it would be to move the filler neck to the side of the car". Chrysler on the early '69 model year B-bodies had a round opening behind the license plate for the filler neck with little side impact (quarter panel impact) clearance around it. They (as I said Chrysler was one of the leaders in safety designs) went to an oval opening to help prevent a side impact from dislodging the filler neck from the gas tank, and did it without a standard or regulation.......why didn't Ford? Well as mentioned there was no regulation so why spend the money.
Here are some examples of the FMVSS Safety Standards that every manufacture has to play by and I don't see one that takes away anyone's freedom or tells them how to drive. Hey if you want to not use your turn signals, never turn on your front or rear defroster, never dip your high beams, take your hood safety latch off, cover all of your marker lights and reflectors with duct tape, not wear your seat belts the Feds won't do a thing..................but watch out for some States and please let me know when you plan to be out on the road so I can keep my wife and kid safe at home
The Standards are not just there for you, they're there to protect others from you, and you from other idiots that don't think when they drive
EXAMPLES OF Federal Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS)
Standard No. 201: Occupant Protection in Interior ImpactScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies performance requirements to afford impact protection for occupants.
Application:
Passenger cars and multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses with a GVWR of 4,536 kg
(10,000 lb) or less
Standard No. 202a: Head RestraintsScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements for head restraints to reduce the frequency and severity of
neck injury in rear-end and other collisions.
Application:
Passenger cars and multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses with a GVWR of 4,536 kg
(10,000 lb) or less
Standard No. 203: Impact Protection for the Driver from the Steering Control SystemScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements for steering control systems that will minimize chest, neck,
and facial injuries to the driver as a result of impact.
Application:
Passenger cars and multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses with a GVWR of 4,536 kg
(10,000 lb) or less; exempted from the standard are: walk-in-vans and vehicles that conform to
the frontal barrier crash requirements (S5.1) of Standard No. 208 by means other than seat belt
assemblies
Standard No. 204: Steering Control Rearward DisplacementScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements limiting the rearward displacement of the steering control
into the passenger compartment to reduce the likelihood of chest, neck, or head injury.
Application:
Passenger cars and multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses; exempted from the
standard are: walk-in vans
Standard No. 205: Glazing MaterialsScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements for glazing materials for use in motor vehicles and motor
vehicle equipment. The purpose of this standard is to reduce injuries resulting from impact to
glazing surfaces, to ensure a necessary degree of transparency in motor vehicle windows for
driver visibility and to minimize the possibility of occupants being thrown through the vehicle
windows in collisions.
Application:
Passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, buses, motorcycles, slide-in campers,
pickup covers designed to carry persons while in motion and low speed vehicles, and glazing
materials for use in those vehicles.
Standard No. 206: Door Locks and Door Retention ComponentsScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements for vehicle door locks and door retention components,
including latches, hinges, and other supporting means, to minimize the likelihood of occupants
being ejected from a vehicle as a result of impact.
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Application:
Passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, and trucks, and buses with a GVWR of 4,536 kg
or less
Standard No. 207: Seating SystemsScope and Purpose:
This standard establishes requirements for seats, their attachment assemblies, and their
installation to minimize the possibility of their failure by forces acting on them as a result of
vehicle impact.
Application:
Passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses
Standard No. 208: Occupant Crash ProtectionScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies performance requirements for the protection of vehicle occupants in
crashes. The purpose of this standard is to reduce the number of deaths of vehicle occupants, and
the severity of injuries, by specifying vehicle crashworthiness requirements in terms of forces and
accelerations measured on anthropomorphic dummies in test crashes, and by specifying
equipment requirements for active and passive restraint systems.
Application:
Passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses, and pressure vessels designed
to contain a pressurized fluid or gas, and explosive devices, for use in the above types of motor
vehicles as part of a system designed to provide protection to occupants in the event of a crash.
Standard No. 209: Seat Belt AssembliesScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements for seat belt assemblies. Seat belt assemblies are devices
such as straps, webbing, or similar device designed to secure a person in a motor vehicle in order
to mitigate the results of any accident, including all necessary buckles and other fasteners and all
hardware designed for installing such seat belt assembly in a motor vehicle. The purpose of this
standard is to ensure that the hardware of seat belt assemblies shall be designed to prevent
attachment bolts and other parts from becoming disengaged from the vehicle while in service.
Application:
Seat belt assemblies for use in passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses
Standard No. 210: Seat Belt Assembly AnchoragesScope and Purpose:
This standard establishes requirements for seat belt assembly anchorages to ensure their proper
location for effective occupant restraint and to reduce the likelihood of their failure.
Application:
Passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, buses, and school buses
Standard No. 211: [Reserved]Standard No. 212: Windshield MountingScope and Purpose:
This standard establishes windshield retention requirements for motor vehicles during crashes.
The purpose of this standard is to reduce crash injuries and fatalities by providing for retention of
the vehicle windshield during a crash, thereby utilizing fully the penetration-resistance and
injury-avoidance properties of the windshield glazing material and preventing the ejection of
occupants from the vehicle.
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Application:
Passenger cars and multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses with a GVWR of 4,536 kg
(10,000 lb) or less; exempted from this standard are: forward control vehicles, walk-in van-type
vehicles, or open-body type vehicles with fold-down or removable windshields
Standard No. 213: Child Restraint SystemsScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies requirements for child restraint systems used in motor vehicles and
aircraft for the purpose of reducing the number of children killed or injured in motor vehicle
crashes and in aircraft.
Application:
Passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses, and child restraint systems for
use in motor vehicles and aircraft
Standard No. 214: Side Impact ProtectionScope and Purpose:
This standard specifies performance requirements for protection of occupants in side impacts.
The purpose of this standard is to reduce the risk of serious and fatal injury to occupants of
passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses in side impacts by specifying
strength requirements for side doors, limiting the forces, deflections and accelerations measured
on anthropomorphic dummies in test crashes, and by other means.
Application:
This standard applies to passenger cars, and to multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses
with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or less, except for walk-in vans, or otherwise
specified.
Standard No. 215: [Reserved]Standard No. 216a: Roof Crush ResistanceScope and Purpose:
This standard establishes strength requirements for the passenger compartment roof. The purpose
of this standard is to reduce deaths and injuries due to the crushing of the roof into the occupant
compartment in rollover crashes.
Application:
Passenger cars (except convertibles) and multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses
(except school buses) with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 lb) or less
