How much safer would the bus be if i installed this grill on a 1985 up VW bus. copy link to adresss bar

Question

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Lzzh9uFiYvc/RkB2s2nruaI/AAAAAAAAAaA/Oi2jctt10tc/DSCF0037.JPG............................................................................

look at VW bus in parkinglot

How much would that grill help for protection in crash.

I am a very new driver who wants a VW bus and need ways to convince my mom to let me get it. It is so unsafe but what can i do to make it safe enough for a young driver to drive everyday. Price is not to much of a problem unless to crazy amount. I just need to know is it possible to make it near to a safe car.

Answer 1

Well, I personally don't think that would help in a front end collision. The whole front bumper is held on with four 3/8" bolts, which would snap off in an instant if anything hit that metal "grill". Then the force of the crash would probably send all that steel into the driver and passenger compartment....

These types of "grills" are actually called, "Roo Bars", and are popular in Australia, to prevent a kangaroo from messing up the front of your bus.

Consider this: in 1973 VW changed the front bumper style to incorporate a impact absorbing front end. This made it MUCH safer than the previous buses, which only had a very light pressed steel bumper to absorb the impact from a crash. The front bumper of a post '73 bus is 19 1/2" high, which is pretty high, so that anything you hit, other than a huge truck, will contact the front bumper. I have my spare tire mounted to the front of my bus to act as a "bumper" in case I hit something big...it will absorb a lot of the energy from an impact. Yes, it will mess up the front of my bus, but I will be safer.

So, if you want the safest bus you can buy, consider anything made after August of 1973.