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Why do we often see cars lying on their sides or on their roofs, even in minor accidents? This happens even with completely modern and advanced models. What determines a car's rollover resistance?
He writes about the factors that cause a car to roll over even in an innocent situation. RBC-Ukraine.
A car rollover is dangerous not only in itself, but also in the consequences that it can entail. After all, when the wheels of a car lose contact with the road, it becomes uncontrollable and moves, sliding on a smooth metal side or roof in an unknown direction. Including the route of such a “car” can lead it to the oncoming lane or, say, the sidewalk. That is why it is so important that even during extreme maneuvers the car remains on four wheels – and therefore, retains controllability.
Why do cars roll over?
Active safety experts divide car rollover into two types: static and dynamic. Both are taken into account by the automaker when the car is designed and tested during safety certification.
Static rollover. The moment when a car rolls over on its side, finding itself on a steep slope with one of its sides down. The resistance to such a rollover is determined by the width of the car's track and the height of its center of gravity. And the center of gravity, in turn, depends on the type of car (passenger, sports car, crossover, SUV), ground clearance, wheel diameter and the car's load at the time of the accident. As you can understand, this type of stability/instability is not of significant importance for the average user, because we do not often encounter slopes of critical steepness, to put it mildly.
Dynamic rollover. The greatest danger for the driver and passengers is another type of rollover – dynamic, which occurs while driving. For example, it occurs as a result of unsuccessful maneuvering, as a result of an accident, when the movement of the car becomes uncontrolled. Such a rollover depends on external influences (impact from another car), on the speed of movement, the wheelbase of the car, suspension settings, type and electronic safety systems, and even the traction qualities of the tires.
When and why does a car roll over?
So, one of the most common situations where a car risks tipping over is the so-called moose test, when a driver tries to go around an unexpected obstacle at high speed. Often, a very modest 50-60 km/h is enough to put the car on its side.
Fortunately, in most cases, it is very difficult to roll over a passenger car on a flat, smooth road - with a sharp maneuver, the passenger car will not roll over, but will slide sideways with its tires and start to turn. That is, a skid will occur, which in itself is also undesirable. Another thing is when, while driving in a skid sideways, the car hits an obstacle such as a curb or pothole with its wheel(s) - then even a low sports coupe will try to lie on its side.
But curbs and potholes are unnecessary when it comes to tall vehicles like SUVs, pickup trucks, large crossovers, and minivans. They can be accidentally tipped over by a bad maneuver at speed. Their center of gravity is higher than that of a passenger car (plus 100-200 mm) - and this is the most important factor affecting tipover. Fortunately, few drivers can turn the steering wheel so quickly that turning or going around an obstacle becomes dangerous.
It is worth noting here that a skilled driver, having noticed in time that his car is turning on two wheels during a maneuver, can correct the situation. He needs to make a short half-turn of the steering wheel in the opposite direction and thus turn the car back onto four wheels.
In case of a traffic accident
Another typical situation of a car rolling over while driving is as a result of an accident, for example, a head-on collision. A car with a sufficiently high center of mass can, after impact, push off from an obstacle, fall to its side and in this form continue moving forward, sliding along the asphalt.
This result is explained by the elasticity of the power elements of the front part of the body - this is necessary to absorb the impact energy and save the lives of people in the cabin.
Also, it is not uncommon for a car that is moving fast enough to overturn after being hit by another car on the side. Moreover, the impact does not necessarily have to be powerful, sometimes a tangential collision during oncoming traffic is enough.
Fascia Massage:
Yes, a car rollover is a very unpleasant thing. But by and large, it is far from the worst evolution that an uncontrolled car can perform during a road accident. Moreover, unlike, for example, a side collision, during a rollover, people in the car have every chance of surviving. After all, when the body rolls over, seat belts and airbags remain as effective as possible. The main thing is to use these belts every time you get into the car.
