dr_who@umcp-cs.UUCP (07/18/83)
According to an article in Reader's Digest (March 1980), General Motors estimated its costs at $509 to 581 1980-dollars per air-bag-equipped car. Ford said its costs could reach $828 by 1982. Repair bills for replacing a deployed bag would be up to 2.5 times the cost of original installment. In light of these facts, let me use $900 per car as my estimate of costs for air bag requirements (in 1983 dollars). The same article reports a 1977 NHTSA estimate of 9000 lives saved per year for air bags and automatic seat belts combined. However, the GAO criticized that estimate (apparently the figures were derived from laboratory test that were simplistic versions of actual accidents). I use 5000 as an estimate, since I don't think most people will wear lap belts, even "automatic" belts. A study of VW rabbit owners who VOLUNTARILY CHOSE and PAID EXTRA for automatic seat belts showed that 45% of them disengaged the seat belts after starting the engine or had the system changed to remove the "automatic" feature. 110,000,000 cars * $900 per car / 11 years avg. life = $9 billion per yr (correct my figures if unrealistic) is the cost. $9 billion divided by 5000 lives = $1.8 million per life, a figure in the reasonable range (i.e., the arguable range) but in my opinion a little on the high side. Add to this the fact that people would be coerced to buy air bags, and the consideration that alternative policies (e.g., encourage insurance companies to pay less to people injured while not wearing seat belts) might be more cost-effective. -- Paul Torek, U of MD College Park
rwhw@hound.UUCP (07/18/83)
Another rip-off by the automobile industry! Assuming 5% profit on the $900
cost is quite a lot when cars are sold in the millions.
I would rather see safety engineered into road design, driver improvment
programs and more meaningful traffic rule enforcment. I believe that these
items would save more lives than any equipment installed in a car that
is only utilized when an accident occurs. When accidents can be prevented,
lives are saved and the cost of owning a car will be reduced.
Roy
ddw@cornell.UUCP (David Wright) (07/19/83)
From: ddw (David Wright)
To: net-auto
Paul Torek's analysis of the airbag issue is flawed for several reasons.
According to an article in Reader's Digest (March 1980), General Motors
estimated its costs at $509 to 581 1980-dollars per air-bag-equipped car.
Ford said its costs could reach $828 by 1982. Repair bills for replacing a
deployed bag would be up to 2.5 times the cost of original installment. In
light of these facts, let me use $900 per car as my estimate of costs for
air bag requirements (in 1983 dollars).
Let's not. As I pointed out in an article a while back, GM has taken to
estimating airbag costs by amortizing their tooling costs over ONLY ONE YEAR.
This despite the fact that the equipment would last a lot longer than that.
If GM tries to do this, they're padding the cost something awful.
In addition, Torek's figures on cost/person do not take into account lower
injury rates and less severe injuries. I have no figures for this, but if
we assume fewer people in fewer hospital beds, and those in the hospitals
having less severe injuries, I think the cost/person would drop by at least
an order of magnitude. The total benefit has to include productive work
saved, hospital costs saved, funeral expenses saved, reduced public outlays
for survivors, etc. I admit this is hard to quantify, but it sure makes
the situation look better.
The costs of replacing an airbag may be high. However, if most of them go
off when you need them, well...how much is your health worth? Besides, if
most go off in significant collisions (available evidence indicates that
this is a reasonable assumption), your typical tinfoil-and-balsawood car
is gonna need a lot of repairing anyway.
Hey, I \do/ wear a seatbelt...
David Wright
{vax135|decvax|ihnss}!cornell!ddw
ddw.cornell@udel-relay
ddw@cornellrwhw@hound.UUCP (07/19/83)
I have been told that when an air-bag device is activated the noise that it
generates destroys ones hearing. Is this fact or fiction?
Roywoods@hao.UUCP (07/19/83)
Please, no more regulation! I don't want the government to *force* me to
pay another $500-$1000 for my new car! Cars cost enough as it is! I personally
do not think air bags will really help all that much, but that isn't the point.
If airbags are really so great, sooner or later the insurance companies will
realize it and begin charging lower rates to costumers whose cars are so equip-
ped. Unless a clear injustice exists, the government should stop imposing so
many cost-increasing regulations.
GREG
{ucbvax!hplabs | allegra!nbires | decvax!brl-bmd | harpo!seismo | menlo70}
!hao!woodsseifert@ihuxl.UUCP (07/20/83)
Please explain how airbags are going to eliminate funeral expenses. Does owning an airbag equiped automobile cause one to become immortal? By the way, balsawood has a very high strength-to-weight ratio. Dave Seifert BMWCCA, Windy City Chapter ihnp4!ihuxl!seifert