European Crash Testing an Increasingly Weighty Matter
Reflecting the obesity epidemic sweeping our society, crash test dummies are porking-up. The Daily Mail reports that Euro NCAP, the organization responsible for crash test results in Europe, is introducing a 6'1" 224 lbs. crash test dummy. The heftier proto-human will accompany the current standard: a 5'9" 172 lbs. male (in the G.I. Joe sense of the word). Not wanting to appear sexist, Euro NCAP's also introducing a 4'11" 108 lbs. female to cover the lower end of the size scale. In the U.S., auto manufacturers abuse up to 18 different crash test dummies in a variety of children's and adult sizes, ranging from the aforementioned 108 lbs. female to a 6'3" 225 lbs. male. NHTSA uses five assorted children's dummies and two adult dummies: the 4'11" female and the 5'9" male. Just in case you were wondering.
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5'9" !?!? Where is the Texan adult male dummy? I am sure that he isn't working on tests of airliners, so he should be available.
To be truly representative of drivers today, half of the dummies would need to have one hand placed next to their ear just before they crash.
That reminds me of this amazing scene in Fight club where Edward Norton examines a burnt car, and they discuss how fat burns so well...