Safety has always been one of the hallmarks of Saturn design. From their spaceframe constructed cars in the 1990s, to its latest reinforced steel unibody models of today, Saturn takes pride in engineering vehicle structures that protect passengers in all sorts of crashes. I've always been fascinated by the survivor stories that Saturn owners have shared with me over the years, so when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) invited SaturnFans.com for a special opportunity to watch as they crash tested an all-new 2008 Saturn Vue – live and in person – I jumped at the chance to see how the vehicle would perform.

If you're not familiar, the IIHS is an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is dedicated to reducing deaths, injuries, and property damage through scientific research and education. The Institute operates a state-of-the-art crash test facility, called the Vehicle Research Center (VRC), in central Virginia. Like the federally funded National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), the IIHS spends a lot of time crashing cars and analyzing the resulting data. While the goals of the two organizations are similar, the the IIHS' testing criteria and evaluating parameters are much more stringent. The IIHS routinely performs its crash tests at faster speeds and under more extreme conditions than the NHTSA.

My wife and I traveled to the VRC last week to watch the Institute conduct a side-impact test on the Vue. Much like the former Saturn plant in Tennessee, the Institute's crash center is nestled among fields and rolling hills. Our stay at the VRC included a personal tour of the sprawling VRC complex. This is where the Institute conducts its frontal offset, side-impact, whiplash, and bumper tests. This particular crash was going to test how well the Vue protects its passengers in a side-impact collision. You probably have seen the center featured in Dateline 'Consumer Alert' stories that, until a couple years ago, aired regularly on the NBC television network.

The VRC is divided into seven distinct areas:

1. Lobby, office, and conference rooms. Inside the lobby area rests two wrecked Chrysler Lebaron convertibles. According to the IIHS, these cars were involved in the first highway accident between two vehicles equipped with driver side airbags. Ironically, this accident happened on a road just a few miles from this facility many years ago.
   
   
2. A display hall where IIHS features vehicles from recent and significant crashes. Cars that have gone through their side-impact test procedure have their doors removed afterwards so that their frame and substructure can be better analyzed. IIHS staff has organized the cars and documented their crashes by placing informative placards and backdrop displays in a way that let's each vehicle tell a story.
   
   
3. A vehicle garage where IIHS technicians prep vehicles for tests by draining the vehicle's petroleum-based fluids, replacing them with non-flamible liquids. They also mount sensors, electronics, and video equipment onto a car. I was surprised to see how much gear needs to be attached to or placed in the car to capture crash data. While the actual side-impact crash is over in a matter of seconds, it takes about two days of prep work to setup a vehicle. The test vehicle spends about half of that time in the garage area up on lifts.
   
   
4. The 21,600 square foot crash hall is the focal point for three runways which allow the IIHS to accommodate a variety of tests. The rigid and moving deformable barriers (used in the frontal offset and side-impact IIHS tests, respectively) are also stored here. Both barriers feature a face made of an aluminum honeycomb. One interesting bit of trivia about the rigid concrete barrier: when it needs to be moved, the barrier can be raised off the floor on a cushion of air like a hovercraft, enabling it to be pushed into and out of position by only a few people.
   
   
5. A crash simulation sled that simulates how well a vehicle's rear crash protection and seat head restraints prevent whiplash. Seats are mounted on a steel flatbed sled that rides on two fixed rails. The sled is moved, or rather suddenly jolted, by a giant horizontal cylinder that slams into the sled to simulate a rear crash. According to the IIHS website, this "recreates the forces on occupants inside vehicles during real-world crashes."
   
   
6. The crash test dummy family room. Several different size dummies "live" in this climate controlled area of the VRC. Each dummy includes between 25 to 40 sensors that record the forces on various parts of the body. The dummies are calibrated for each specific test before they are positioned in vehicles.
   
   
7. A photo studio where "before" and "after" pictures are taken for IIHS reports and website.

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