by Frank Sherosky

Created on: December 29, 2008   Last Updated: January 07, 2009

Auto designers are trained by their own legal departments to expect lawsuits. It's not a matter of if, but when. In fact, there isn't a single automotive design decision that is free of legal challenges. After all, human life is involved.

An OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer), therefore, always lives under the shadow of litigation risk. The latest risk involves the enhanced fuel economy standards which seem to imply lighter vehicles vs. present crashworthiness standards that expect all vehicles, light and heavy, to perform to equivalent levels, even when two mismatched vehicles collide.

So, it's fuel economy vs. safety. Build a vehicle like a tank, letting fuel-mileage slip; or build it like an ultra-light, letting crashworthiness suffer. OEMs, however, are expected to achieve parity, be competitive as well as make a profit.

Key question: Will pressure to meet increased federal fuel-economy standards lead auto manufacturers to build lighter vehicles that inherently sacrifice crashworthiness standards? The answer should be no, because laws must be met. Even so, engineering is often a balancing act between government standards, manufacturing limitations and profit needs.

Fuel economy is more propulsion-technology dependent, and can be met by choosing electricity over fossil fuels. Crashworthiness, however, is structure reliant, and far more subjective because of crash situation and weight variables. That alone means liability claims will not dissipate. The desire to extract payment for pain and suffering from any accident will probably continue to outweigh logic and the comparison of circumstance.

Pressure to meet fuel economy and safety simultaneously will always burden the OEMs. On the other hand, achieving balance between requirements that may compete with each other, in addition to manufacturing costs, will especially strain OEMs' character. At some point during vehicle development, OEMs will be forced to choose between a perceived greater good over some lesser but perhaps expedient good.

How is a vehicle truly crashworthy? First, realize the government standard already implies a judgment call, as lawmakers establish the minimum and maximum limits of parameters recognized by government engineers. Using natural laws of physics and the laws of probability, crashworthiness is ultimately defined by degree of injury. Taken to the extreme, though, there will always be a condition by which no driver or passenger can survive. Think head-on collision at 100+ mph or a

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