@MattS this will be my last post on this subject.

Please look here Ford Frame and Chassis Line Drawing

Had a Ford Truck of approximately the same model year struck a tree similarly to the way the Porsche struck the tree, there would be considerable intrusion of the tree into the passenger compartment before the frame rails would even be contacted, much less begin to resist further intrusion. Same for similar vehicles by GM, Dodge/Chrysler, etc.

That accident is pretty much near worst case for any vehicle design.

“Unless you honestly believe Ford is replacing the steel body panels with aluminum panels that can take an impact in the door area of approximately 7.5 tons of force?”

No, I don’t believe that. However the F150 is not a unibody, it still has a steel ladder frame supporting the body. What I do believe is that even in a side impact, the strength of the frame is far more important than the strength of the body.

No, CarLitGuy, my apologies. I didn’t mean to sound like I was accusing you of mocking her for claims she isn’t making.

However, the OP seemed to be doing just that, describing a minor part of her claims in a way that gives the impression that she was arguing that Porsche caused the accident. I wasn’t looking to get into a discussion of the merits of her actual claims.

My impression was that in production cars, no matter how safe, impacts at above 60mph usually aren’t survivable. CarLitGuy’s calculations back that up. If Paul Walker hit a tree at 90mph, he would have been unlikely to survive in any car approved for the roads in the USA – and that wasn’t because the Porsche is such a hot car; almost every car sold in the USA can go 90 mph if the driver has the nerve or the stupidity to keep it floored. (I happen to know that a 1987 Ford Econoline van with the smallest engine sold can peg the speedometer at 85 and still be accelerating – and that model was mainly sold to companies because it was so stodgy no American would pick it for himself.) If he had it slowed down to 63 when he hit the tree, he might have survived a straight-head crash in a Porsche or many other cars, but he seems to have slid into it sideways with the tree impacting the passenger compartment. That is far less survivable, because the only crush zone is the passengers.

Note that race car drivers often survive crashes at much higher speeds, but:

1. They are protected by a 5 point harness that is fitted to them and spreads the forces to most of their shoulders, chest, and pelvis. It provides a lot more protection than the lap and shoulder straps in production cars. The custom fitting of the racing 5 point harness adds a lot to the protection – it ensures the forces are applied to the strongest points of the body, and that the harness fits closely enough that the driver doesn’t slip a few inches before slamming against the straps. But it’s obviously much more work to don and much more restrictive than a lap and shoulder strap – but too many people don’t fasten that because it’s restrictive or because 3 seconds to fasten a buckle is too much trouble. If Porsche put a 5 point harness into their production cars, most drivers wouldn’t bother fastening them, and most of those that did would not have them adjusted properly.

2. Race cars are built using materials and construction techniques costing several times as much as even a Porsche. If the DOT had mandated safety standards requiring the same body strength in regular consumer cars, most of us would still be driving horribly unsafe used cars from the 1950’s and 60’s because we couldn’t afford the compliant ones.

3. Race tracks are designed for “safe crashes”, that is to avoid direct rather than glancing impacts between fast cars and fixed obstacles as much as possible. Cars clip other cars quite often, but they’re all moving in the same direction at nearly the same speeds, so those impacts are relatively gentle. The main danger is when a car departs the track, and can’t steer into one of the safe run-out areas, but then the car doesn’t just run right into a wall or a tree. It will usually be decelerated by a series of glancing blows rather than suffering one sudden stop. Those multiple blows are still pretty severe, but the tube frames are designed to hold together through them, and the g-forces remain within what a physically fit and well-protected human can stand.

I just googled up some images of Meadow Rain Walker. The defendants are in big trouble: she’s very cute.

You said: I can accept that. What I don’t accept is mocking her for claims she isn’t making, such as that Porsche is responsible for the cause of the accident.

My apologies MattS, I can’t seem to find the spot in my posts where I mocked her for claims she wasn’t making. I thought I was focused on design defect claims. Also, you said “Only in the body panels, the vehicle frame is still steel.” You both agree and make my point for me re: use of lighter, less resilient materials. Unless you honestly believe Ford is replacing the steel body panels with aluminum panels that can take an impact in the door area of approximately 7.5 tons of force? While not unibody construction, there is no reason to believe the body on frame cab design currently used in the industry is significantly better than the Porsche Carrera GT in this accident.

@Wfjag – a bit simplistic, but yes, that would make a great cartoon caption for the differences between a consumer expectations test and a risk-utility test in litigation. Obviously, I disagree w/ CA’s policy choices to routinely use consumer expectations tests in auto accident claims of this nature.

Bob,

Her claims may well be without merit, but if you are going to mock her, can you please stick to mocking her for the claims she actually did make?

“Ford F150s are using aluminum where they used to use steel.”

Only in the body panels, the vehicle frame is still steel. (I recently bought a 2015 F150).

“Obviously, I don’t find plaintiff’s claims that Porsche bears some defective design liability plausible in this particular impact.”

I can accept that. What I don’t accept is mocking her for claims she isn’t making, such as that Porsche is responsible for the cause of the accident.