Ford Beats The Mustang Convertible Crunch
Published: March 15th, 2010
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After early versions of the 2010 Mustang Convertible were caught crushing crash dummy heads, Ford re-worked its retro cruiser for a less “mind-blowing” crash test performance. If you’ve got a 2010 ‘stangvertible in mind, you might want to make sure it was built after December of last year.
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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Responding to an identified problem quickly, and apparently effectively. Sounds like the right approach. Ford appears to have learned from past experiences.
At the risk of sounding like a complete idiot, I wonder if the test results would have been much different had the top been up. Before I get the snarky comments that I may so richly deserve, I've rented Mustang convertibles a few times in recent years. The top frame is nothing as structurally sound as the coupe's steel roof, but it's also not a flimsy piece of canvas with a few umbrella bows built in. I've seen very minor additions to a vehicle that had significant effects on crash tests, so I wonder if simply having the top up would provide just enough support to prevent the windshield header from flexing in and slightly downward. And since convertibles are more often driven with the top up, it may be a risk that some owners could live with. Any engineers out there who care to weigh in on this?
I doubt that the top being up would have much positive effect (yes I am an engineer). It is a collection of metal segments rather than a stamped outer and inner roof section. And it is designed to move, so it is unlikely to be much better than if the top were down. They crash tested a worse cash scenario which is the right thing to do. (I also did some crash testing for a seating supplier.) As a test engineer, I loved breaking things. Ah, the FMVSS 207/210 test, and the 201 test also, those were the days.
One of the reason I don't think I will ever own a convertible again. Anyone know if the hard tops that are removable are any better or worse than the traditional rag tops? The hard tops I am describing are like the Vette and the Solstice Coupe. Not too many people make them cars that have this anymore.