Pedestrian protection: Will all cars look the same in the future?

Updated



The crucial determining factor when it comes to buying a vehicle nowadays is styling. Manufacturers spend millions on design studios to give their vehicles a distinct look and thereby differentiate their marque from that of the competitor.

Since 2005, however, new legislation has been painfully encroaching on the creative freedom of the Pininfarinas of this world.

Every new model launched onto the European market since 2005 has had to fulfil certain minimum requirements in regard to pedestrian protection.

Basically there are two methods of testing:

  • A dummy leg ('Simulated leg impact on a pedestrian') is propelled against the front bumper of a vehicle at a set speed. The resulting deceleration and the angle of bend between upper and lower leg are not allowed to exceed a legally prescribed value.

  • In this test, a dummy head ('Simulated head impact on a pedestrian') is propelled against the bonnet of a vehicle at a set speed. The physical distress caused to the dummy head is likewise not permitted to exceed a legally prescribed value.



And of course, in order to keep within these legally prescribed limits, the zones most likely to be involved in a collision with a pedestrian have to be capable of a certain degree of crumpling, a consideration that had little attention paid to it before 2005.

The influence that this has on the design of a vehicle can be clearly seen in the current Mercedes C Class.
Whereas its predecessor was allowed to get away with having a significantly more shallow front, the steep prow of the 2007 model represented a concession to pedestrian protection rather than a designer's passing fancy.

There has been talk within the industry of even more stringent regulations from 2015, which are likely to restrict styling even further and lead to vehicles being far more uniform in their shaping and proportions.

So can we expect all cars to look identical in future? Does this spell the end for sports cars with low bonnets and sexy curves?

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