NEW YORK (Money Magazine) -
It's the biggest disconnect in the automotive world. As millions of consumers clamor for an ever-growing SUV lineup, regulators, politicians and pundits savage the same vehicles for their fuel-thirsty ways and purported safety risks -- particularly their vulnerability to rollovers.
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By saying last month that he wouldn't put his own children in some SUV models, Dr. Jeffrey Runge, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the nation's top auto regulator, only fanned the flames that were started during the Ford Explorer/Firestone blowout scandal.
It's getting hard to find the facts amid the increasingly hysterical tone of the debate. And even when you can, they don't tell a clear story: Runge notes that the fatality rate of rollovers in SUVs is three times the passenger-car rate. Automakers reply that three out of four people who die in rollovers aren't wearing seat belts -- and point to government data showing that SUVs are two-to-three times safer than cars in the front, side and rear collisions that make up 97 percent of crashes.
So are SUVs a major hazard or not?
My take: Using a Chevy TrailBlazer to tow your boat or a Honda Pilot to chauffeur the kids does not make you a road-going Mad Max -- assuming you're serious about being safe. That means driving your SUV with respect for its size, weight and slower reflexes. And it means buying into the latest in safety features. SUV designers have focused on preventing rollovers and protecting occupants when they do occur. They've also been working on what the industry calls "compatibility," making SUVs less damaging to smaller cars in collisions.
In fact, many models are adopting safety and handling features once reserved for top luxury and sports cars. You'll sometimes have to pay extra for them -- automakers don't offer every bell and whistle on $25,000 sport utes -- but if safety is a priority, consider skipping leather seats or a megawatt audio system for features that might save your life. Here's what you should insist on:
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL -- I've loved stability control systems ever since experiencing firsthand how effective they are at keeping vehicles on course, whether on dry, wet, or icy surfaces. Don't confuse these with traction control, which merely regulates a spinning wheel. Sophisticated stability control systems do manage wheelspin, but they also monitor the forces affecting the vehicle's four corners. When the system senses an oncoming skid or spin, it applies individual brakes to correct it instantly, usually before the driver is even aware of what's happening.
Viewed by many experts as the most important safety advance since anti-lock brakes, these electronic guardian angels may be especially advantageous for SUVs, which can be a handful in emergencies. "What stability control prevents is a skid or a slide, and that's what leads to rollovers in SUVs," said Brian O'Neill, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which performs rigorous crash testing.
Now standard on most premium SUVs or sold as options for roughly $500 to $1,000, the systems go by names like Ford's AdvanceTrac or acronyms like Mercedes' ESP and Toyota's VSC.
HEAD-CURTAIN AIR BAGS -- If all else fails, head-curtain air bags, which fill up the side-window area to protect occupants and prevent ejection during collisions or rollovers, can be a lifesaver. Unlike conventional air bags, which lose pressure almost immediately after impact, these remain inflated for several seconds, keeping occupants inside the vehicle and protected even during multiple rollovers.
ROLLOVER SENSORS -- Just now coming into vogue -- they're standard on the Volvo XC90 and Mercedes ML-Class, for example, and available as part of a $560 head-curtain package on Ford Explorers and Expeditions -- these activate the air bags before the vehicle goes roof-side down. The sensors on the Volvo take the concept a step further, recognizing the conditions that presage a rollover and actively attempting to stabilize the vehicle when it threatens to flip.
Finally, I ought to address car-based crossovers, which inevitably come up in conversations about SUV safety. Crossovers -- which tend to be lighter and lower to the ground while keeping the truck styling, "command view" and all-wheel drive that have made SUVs so popular -- are not inherently safer than conventional SUVs. But they generally have some positive attributes: The ability to avoid an accident in the first place -- by stopping, changing directions quickly and maintaining control -- remains the best protection, and crossovers such as the Acura MDX and BMW X5 tend to out-stop and out-handle truck-based SUVs. As for compatibility, their less rigid frames and lower profiles can be less destructive to smaller vehicles.
Of course, no air bag or electronic gadget yet invented is a match for that most unglamorous and underused safety device: the seat belt. Wear it, or don't blame others for the consequences.
Lawrence Ulrich writes about cars for Money Magazine. You can contact him at autos@money.com.
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