Some 'Luxury:' Minor Bumps Turn into Expensive Repairs

Aug. 2, 2007 (KABC-TV) (KABC) -- Luxury cars have a reputation for being well-built, but in recent crash tests by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, bumpers on some of the most expensive cars performed poorly. Even a minor bump in a luxury car can turn into an expensive repair.

The new crash tests were conducted at very slow speeds -- similar to the speed of a brisk walk, in fact. But as the results show, most car bumpers don't do a very good job. And when it comes to bumpers on luxury cars, they aren't luxurious at all, and can be downright expensive to repair.

It didn't matter which luxury car that was tested. From the Saab 9-3 to the Infiniti G35, all 11 cars in the crash test sustained more than $5,000 in damage, and four sustained over $10,000.

"The Institute is releasing results of a series of three and six-mile-per-hour bumper tests of eleven mid-size luxury cars. The tests are designed to evaluate how well the vehicle's bumper protects it in everyday, fender-bender-type collisions," said Joe Nolan, of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. "The purpose of a bumper is to limit damage to the bumper and not allow damage to expensive components like headlamps, fenders and grilles."

But that didn't happen at all, despite the fact these were very slow-speed tests.

"The Institute's full-width barrier test should be an easy one to ace. It's conducted at six miles an hour, a brisk walking speed, and the energy of the crash can be spread across the entire front end of the vehicle," said Nolan.

The Saab 9-3 performed the best, with just over $5,000 in damage total in the four tests. That was followed by the Audi A4 at $5,800, and the Lincoln MKZ at just under $6,000 in damage.

At the bottom of the list are the Mercedes C Class with over $11,000 in damage, the Acura TL at $11,199, and the Infiniti G35 is considered a disaster with nearly $14,000 in damage costs.

"It's not difficult to design better bumpers," said Nolan.

There are ways to improve bumpers: