We’ve talked about being upside down on auto loans on these digital pages before, but we’ve never really talked about being… upside down. Literally.
Sometimes all the traction in the world does nothing to keep a car’s undercarriage pointed towards terra firma. Sunroofs can become glass floors in a hurry, especially if soft earth or an impacting vehicle unexpectedly enters the scene. In the case of Jeep’s latest Wrangler Unlimited, the unexpected trip 90-degrees from vertical took place in the worst place possible: in front of cameras, in the crash test facility of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Suffice it to say the institute frowned upon the Wrangler’s unrecoverable roll to starboard.
As you’d expect, the JL Wrangler Unlimited’s impromptu flight generated plenty of buzz online, and likely no shortage of consternation for Fiat Chrysler execs. The automaker claims the Jeep didn’t tip over during its own test; however, after agreeing to repeat the driver-side small overlap crash, the IIHS watched the model launch itself a second time.
Looking forward to the Bronco IIHS test pic.twitter.com/GXsvHQTcTg
— Adam J. Tonge (@ajtonge40) May 8, 2020
This writer has had the good fortune of never finding himself in such a frightening and dangerous situation. Can’t say the same for several friends. We’ve come a long way, safety-wise, since the days when a rollover could quickly snuff the life out of a vehicle’s occupants. Seatbelts, reinforced roofs, beefy pillars, and side curtain airbags go to work in a hurry when called upon. Electronic stability control works proactively to prevent upsets.
Still, rollovers are a reality we’ll likely never be free from. Have you ever found yourself upside down while behind the wheel? If it’s not too emotionally painful, tell us the story. Also: how did the car take it?
[Image: IIHS]
I was impressed with the level of occupant protection in the Wrangler. I think the engineers did a great job, rollover or not.
I was driving on the freeway last year and saw a Chevy pickup swerve abruptly to one side and then the other. It went fully airborne. I saw it rotating (I remember thinking, “that’s a Chevy”) as it flew. It landed on its roof and slid onto the shoulder. If the driver had his seatbelt on, I think he would have been uninjured. The roof held up extremely well. All this at 70mph. I was pretty impressed with that, and it was not a newer truck.
Sure, the car didn’t take the energy but deflected itself upwards…
This is a classic “Horses for Courses”. I agree that the driver did exceptionally well. Since my wife would like one, it was good to see.
In HS my friend rolled his 1977 Jeep Grand Wagoneer. He used to spin it out in parking lots and the like but unknown to us, the last attempt was a disaster as the lot was completely clean and dry…he put it in reverse, got it to 30 and cut the wheel hard. I was in the back seat with three hitchhikers (from our school but in 10th grade) when he hit the gas. I braced as I heard the screaming tires and then silence. It’s over, I thought. No, we were airborne, and we crashed to the ground with the front edge of the hood and the top of the windshield landing first. I watched the windshield shatter, and it turns out the two front door windows blew out as well. We then rolled onto the passenger side and slid to a stop. I tried to open the door but I could not get the door to open – maybe because the three hitchhikers under my feet prevented me from giving it a good push. We ended up walking out of the broken windshield. The wrecker eventually came and righted the truck. It now sported the lines of a Triumph TR-7. Nobody was hurt though my friend was carless for a few months. The stupidity of youth.
Although it’s never happened to me, on 3 separate occasions I’ve pulled people out of inverted vehicles.
#1: A lady who swerved to avoid a deer at night, and her car rolled up the embankment of a country road and landed upside down ever so gently. She was uninjured. I was the first on the scene.
#2: A guy who was obviously speeding went straight off a turn, then airborne, followed by his car doing pirouettes on the fairway of a public golf course. My only time on a golf course. He was banged up, but OK. Funny footnote: A local news truck arrived seconds after me, and the ambulance much later.
#3: Two guys on I-70 near Columbus, OH swerved to avoid a blown truck tire carcass, and sent their Explorer into the grassy median, upside down. My dad and I helped them out. They were bloodied, but OK.
I’ll never own a convertible without side support (like the Fiat 500c of all things). Ah, I’ll never own a convertible.
We saw two young ladies in a B2000 (I think, it was a long time ago) hit an icy patch and roll the truck landing on the roof 3 times in quick succession. They were banged and bruised and asked for a ride to the hospital. No cell phones to the general public in the early 80s.
My cousin, just after getting her license got on the shoulder and jerked the compact Chevy pickup back on the road, crossed lanes and went through a fence and over the embankment coming to a rest upside down. We helped her fix the fence, couldn’t help her ego.
I myself have not been upside down in a road legal car.
Years ago while walking the dog early on a Saturday morning, with dry roads watched as a young lady in a 1st generation Saturn Vue took the turn a little too quickly, went over the curb with her front passenger side wheel and then flipped the vehicle onto the driver’s side.
Gave credibility to Consumer Reports and IIHS concerns regarding that model.
A friend who is a police officer in cottage country states that the majority of investigations regarding vehicles up there are people swerving to miss animals. If a pick-up or SUV are involved then there is a probability of a ‘roll over’.
I owned a Saturn Vue for 12 years (first-year model). Never once even came close to flipping it.
When I was in high school we watched a Bronco roll on a bridge near my house. Luckily they didn’t go into the water. From what we saw it appeared the driver attempted a pass after they found themselves in a lane that merged as the bridge was narrower then road leading to it. The SUV swerved, the wheels clipped a curb and that was enough to put it on its doors. You could clearly see the marks in the pavement where the wheels dug in. The thing I remember most was how the whole event occurred in slow motion. We hear the skid, looked up and immediately thought “yep its going to roll”. Then glass and sparks went everywhere. Everyone was OK thankfully.
I almost went turtle in an Isuzu Rodeo. I came over a bridge (yep another bridge) to find traffic completely stopped on the other side. I slammed on the brakes and realized my heavy SUV was never going to stop in time so I swerved to avoid the line of vehicles in front of me. I assume this is how the captain of the Titanic felt, inputs did nothing but introduce body lean. It felt like she was going to roll but just smacked the bumper, 6″ sooner on the brakes would have resulted in no contact. However that feeling of having zero control was enough for me to sell the Rodeo and swear off SUVs forever. My previous car was a Prelude Si, which was known for its ability to change direction on a dime and give you change – the difference in handling between the two vehicles was night and day.
Like I said in the other post about the Jeep: if you watch Live PD or Cops they often perform the PIT maneuver to vehicles that attempt to flee. The CUV and SUVs tip way easier then cars and trucks. Higher center of gravity = greater roll over risk. This is not rocket science.
Our safety philosophy clearly skewed towards the big dumb incapable vehicles for inattentive and or unskilled drivers rather than capable vehicles manned by attentive drivers with some skill at avoidance maneuvering.
Considering the general driving public, the big dumb model is the correct one.
The narrow track necessary for off-roading makes Jeeps less-than-capable on pavement. That’s why they’ve been down-rated since forever by Consumer Reports.
If people start buying Mack truck cabovers (minus the trailer), they’ll down-rate that too, and the IIHS will rate it unacceptable. One standard for specialty vehicles and passenger cars alike makes no sense.
Having said that, the observation about the general driving public is unfortunately accurate. Even passenger cars must be designed for the lowest common denominator, which includes people who shouldn’t be driving at all.
The only times I’ve ended up on my side involved IED’s blowing up under the truck. This includes sideways jaunts in Jeeps, a Bronco II, and several less rollover-proned vehicles which proves nothing I suppose other than that it is better to be lucky than good.
Gee, wasn’t it about 20 years or so ago Ford Explorers were rolling over? Bad then good now?
It’s never happened to me but it was a close call about 10-11 years ago when I was having a part time JOB as a delivery guy and was driving one of those cab forward small diesel trucks.
Since I wasn’t used to it yet, I took one of those sharp 270° ramps on the HWY and I believe it was 25 MPH showing on the sign but I was driving about 5 MPH over that limit (like I used to on my personal vehicle) and hauling about 1000 lbs didn’t do any favors either.
I just noted the truck had at least the passenger side front tire up in the air and the cab was starting to lean towards the driver’s side so I just panicked and hit the brakes ASAP. I ended up 90 degrees off the road and with a stalled truck but fine otherwise.
I just turned the key in and took off the scene with no cars (thankfully) behind me.
Yes I know, I was a foolish 19 yr old back then. Mea culpa
Wow, Wranglers don’t handle well. STOP the PRESSES!! Who knew?
Wranglers handle better than you think. Sure, they’re a bit top-heavy but not nearly so much as some other vehicles I know. On the other hand, a low-slung sedan or coupe is far less likely to roll than most CUVs, SUVs and pickup trucks.
I’ve commented previously elsewhere that the rollover is almost designed into the Jeep as the structure around the passenger compartment is hardened to such an extent. The simple fact is that despite looking worse, the driver (and presumably the front passenger) are strongly protected from major injury because of the overwhelming strength of the structure. The frame arch surrounding the front suspension is what pushes the vehicle over towards the right while simultaneously, the passenger-side tire steers hard left due to the collision. The two combined work to tip the car over but at no point is the passenger compartment impinged.
This reminds me a lot of an acquaintance of mine who has owned Wranglers all her life. A couple years ago she was broadsided by someone in a Buick sedan which tore off her driver’s side front suspension. Fortunately, both she and the driver of the Buick were unharmed but while the Buick was totaled, the Jeep was repaired and back on the road within a month.
Back in the mid-80’s I had a cool-ass 1983 Ranger. With a 3″ body lift, a 3″ suspension lift, and 35″ Monster Mudders, it was only limited off-road by the 80 HP 2.3 Lima. On-road grip was another story. I rolled it on to the right side, navigating a 90 degree turn at about double the appropriate speed.
Ran home, called the towing company, and after they righted it drove it back home. All before anyone noticed the chaos!
Spoiler alert: No rollover involved here.
I distinctly remember the first time I lost traction (steering/directional, this is not a burnout story either) on the wheels of a vehicle as a new driver. It was turning a corner on a residential street in the rain near my high school (and if you knew my high school, there was a permanent sheen of low-friction petroleum products on the street just waiting to be reactivated by the newly-falling rain). I counter-steered by luck (50/50 shot) and after sawing my way to a stop, wanted to know more.
The point being: Many drivers are unfamiliar with the concept of “contact patch” and how small those can be and that they do not offer unlimited friction. Many drivers are never in their lives aware that they are close to losing traction or have lost traction until they are in a wreck and they are left wondering what happened. [Which partially explains why they cruise along in rain or light winter precip oblivious to how close they are getting to the edge.]
Now if you’ll excuse me, Thunderbirds are Go! and I need to get back to Tracy Island. [The “real” 1960’s version, not the warmed-over CGI version.]
Good point. In high school I spun my Mustang. It wasn’t a V8, it was the inline 6 with all of about 90 HP back then. All it took was a little rain.
What catches almost everyone out is fish-tail / tank-slapper back-n-forth action. They over correct. When the vehicle slides back its scrubbed off enough speed to suddenly regain grip which sends you off rather quickly in the opposite direction. You are actually better off to not counter steer and just let the car loop around which allows for a safe stop. Sure you’ll be pointing the wrong way but you will not off into a ditch… or worse.
Three stories: friend of mine in HS rolled a Datsun truck. By some stroke of luck he was uninjured but the top and hood was crumpled. The next day he went to pick it up from the lot after it had been towed away by the wrecker. The little Datsun still started, emitting a lot of smoke. He drove it home!
The Sad: Another gent – we’ll call him Dave – I knew in high school – some years after – was involved in a one-car accident in a Grand National (or Regal T-Type). Friend was driving, showing off. He hit the edge of the shoulder, over corrected, and lost control. Well the car flipped over, crumpling the top of the car. Dave had his neck broken and ended up being confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Last time I saw him was at his house on a little lake. He owned a Camaro that he got to ride in while his friends drove.
My own close call: My GF-now-wife and I were driving to visit her sister who liked in Detroit. We were in her very used and abused 1984 VW Rabbit GTI. There was a MI state trooper maybe a quarter mile behind us. I went to (slowly) pass another driver, who was apparently paying too much attention to the cop car behind him. He drifted into our lane, and just touched the back of the VW. It immediately spun out of control. I fought with the steering wheel but to no avail. We skidded off the road. It was one of those slow motion moments where I thought I was going to die as we pushed over a mile marker.
Luckily it was March and there was still some wet snow on the shoulder of the highway. We slid to a stop, my heart beating like a triphammer.
If it had been dry out – so I reasoned at the time – the chance for us to roll would have been a lot higher.
As a young kid in the early ’70’s I lived on the edge of Carbondale, IL, on a country road that led into town. A neighbor and I were riding bikes on a school playground one summer evening (next door to my house), facing the road, which had a banked left curve and led into town. A guy driving a big, old mid-60’s Buick CONVERTIBLE (and apparently he was intoxicated) missed the curve, and, as he drove off the road, the banked curve caused him to corkscrew in the air. The driver jumped (flew??) out of the car in mid-air, and the car crashed into the yard of the school, upside down. Several onlookers quickly gathered, and when the police arrived, they assumed the driver was still in the car. My friend and I went over to an officer, and pointed out the driver, who was pacing around in the crowd. He was questioned, and quickly taken away. Absolutely no injuries that we could see. That happened almost 50 years ago, and I remember it like it was yesterday.
She’s a “Roller”
Is that an April Wine reference?
I’ve been at many roll-over’s. As long as the occupants are wearing seat belts, they do okay. The whole “they were saved because of no seat belt and got thrown from vehicle” is statistically bullsh!t. It isn’t any fun wandering through tall grass, ditch water and brush looking for an ejected corpse because that is what they tend to be.
As a former rural EMT/First Responder I agree. Ejected = Dejected.
The typical scenario I’ve dealt with is that one side of the car dropped into the ditch and then hit a driveway, flipping it over the other direction.
The frustrating ones were when the driver ran off into the forest to get where he could sleep it off before the cops could check BAC. In the meantime half a dozen local responders get called out of bed at 2am to spend an hour walking the ditches half a mile in both directions looking for a body.
Roll your car in Lemons and the team is out for the race, and the driver is out for the season…and there you have a cage, 5 points, helmet and HANS.
Not a rollover story: but the last and only time I was in a vehicle whose tires were decidedly not grounded to the ground was about 20 years ago.
I was riding in a ’99 Ranger with those dogawful yump seats and my mom’s friend was at the wheel. She was from Indiana and seemed to think that gave her some fabulous driving prowess because NASCAR; not even joking.
Normally I didn’t wear my seat belt because I was generally wedged pretty tightly back there. We were driving through the middle of an ice storm, going much faster than was prudent and hit ice. One side of the car gripped, the other slipped. We spun about 3 times until the front tire got caught on a snowbank and the car laid down. On this particular occasion, I had the forethought to wear my belt; my spidey sense was tingling and I knew how this idiot drove. Lucky I did since I would have fallen on my face straight down had I not. Being doubled over until I could unhook my belt and shimmy out the back window wasn’t fun, but no injuries occurred.
This was also the only time I have ever ridden in a police car with the partition. I never need to do that again.
There’s a far higher chance of spinal cord injuries and entrapments in a rollover. While I’m not sure these tests directly translate into more real world Jeep rollovers, it certainly is a black eye for the brand.
Have any other SUVs flipped in these tests?
My mother was driving her ’83 Ford Laser (Australia) down a dirt road, caught a pothole, and rolled the car onto its roof. After righting the car, the roadside assist said that apart from the cabin now flat on one side and more angle on the other side, it was perfectly capable of being driven. So they did drive the 100+ km home. They straightened the body, gave it a paint job and the car lasted another 10 years before being given to my brother. Tough little car. Tough Mom!
Early 80’s I was sitting in the rear of a friends Jeep CJ-7 when he took a hard left turn at around 40-45 mph. I felt the right rear wheel lift and I grabbed the roll bar kind of feeling that the vehicle might rollover or at least tip. Thankfully he was an apt driver and corrected himself. This wasn’t long after the 60 minutes segment on the propensity of Jeep CJ’s to roll over with the citations in the Army manual warning not to take sharp turns otherwise known as the J-turn.