Bob,

I would assume that cars are more streamlined mainly to reduce fuel consumption, and that this in turn is done both to comply with emission targets (enter your favourite VW joke here) and to apply to the buyer's finer feelings (i.e. his/her wallet) by offering better fuel economy.

For my part, I drive a fairly recent car, and can definitely see the end of the bonnet from the driver's seat. It might help that I'm reasonably tall (6'2" or thereabouts), I guess, but I think that in all modern cars I've driven, I've always been able to see the end of the bonnet.

However, when looking up the Nissan Pixo, I can sort of see what you mean; the bonnet is both very short and sloping; I've never driven one, though, so don't know what that would be like from a bonnet-viewing perspective.

/Mattias

DG,

Of course!

Anecdotically, I actually know this only too well; my youngest brother was hit by a car when he was, I think, 7 or 8; luckliy the speed was fairly low but more importantly, it was a small car (a Fiat 126, I recall) and he was swept over the bonnet, across the windshield and onto the ground with damages limited to a corner broken off a front tooth (probably from hitting the side rear-view mirror) and a concussion; to this day he does not remember the accident.

I, on the other hand, remember it only too well, as he was in my care when it happened, on our way to the local outdoor pool. The 10 minutes or so before the ambulance arrived were some of the worst in my life, the only thing going through my head being "I've killed my brother" on permanent repeat. Brrr.

So yes: more pedestrian safety built into cars gets my thumbs-up!

/Mattias

Edited By Banjoman on 07/01/2016 10:30:01

My wife has a VW Lupo which has a visible bonnet…just.

I fall into the 4×4 bull bar category and have the same problem in estimating where the nearside front corner of the bull bar actually is as the ping pong table sized flat bonnet obscures everything. I solved the problem by welding a short pole to the top of the bull bar.

As for pedestrian protection I find that a cow catcher works very well in protecting my car from pedestrians, cyclists, small cars and snow drifts.

Paul

Bob, The current design of car bonnets incorporates a requirement for a space between the bonnet panel and the engine block. It was found that people being thrown onto bonnets often sustained serious injuries because there was no 'give' in the bonnet panel due to the hard and sharp engine block and components being immediately below it. So a crumple zone has to be added above the engine which in turn means that all modern cars with front engines will have relatively high bonnets. The downside, as you say, is that it makes it difficult to judge exactly where the front of the car is. The answer is indeed parking sensors which are in fact pretty reliable. If they are covered, say by ice or snow build up then they fail 'safe' by screaming at you as soon as you switch on the ignition. They also have a range of 3-4 feet so if you are moving slowly into a parking space you will have a rough idea of when to stop and if you don't hear the preliminary beeps then you will be alerted that maybe there could be a fault.

Of course you could alternatively stick a thin flexible rod on the front of the numberplate which projects above the bonnet line and even fly a little flag from it…

Rear parking sensors are a no brainer in my view, the cost of repairing just one relatively minor reversing ding would immediately pay for the installation. It can be difficult to work out where the back of the car is as well if it has a sloping hatch etc.

Bull bars are of course child/pedestrian killers and should be removed when vehicles are being driven on public roads, there ought to be a law against them.

As far as ships are concerned, what you say is indeed true but bulbous bows have been around since the 1930s, Bremen and Europa had them. They are of course now pretty much universal but I would imagine that the construction is quite lightweight (they are there to add buoyancy too) and would crumple up quite easily unlike the rigid stem forging of the old straight bow ships. Still, in solving one problem you can easily create another.

Colin

Paul,

I think Immanuel Kant, had he been a member of the forum, might have had a thing or two to say in reply to your last posting …

/Mattias

The major pressure for sloping bonnet design in cars is the voluntary NCAP test protocol. I suspect that car manufactures abide by this because otherwise it would be incorporated into direct EU legislation. As regards sloping lorry fronts this news item may be of interest.

So, essentially, there is considerable pressure to develop vehicle fronts which slope downward, and most new vehicles will conform. Your best bet might be to buy an older car – possibly vintage?

Bob, you sound a LOT more than four years older than me!

Colin

No worries, Paul — that is pretty much the spirit in which I read it.

Now, if we're to believe Monty Python, though, Kant might, except on rare occassions, have been less than ideal company …

/Mattias