Swedish ragtops top the safety stakes

Saab's 9-3 Convertible and Volvo's C70 drop-top outclassed rival German offerings -- not to mention their American counterparts -- in recent crash tests conducted in the US by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS).

The midsize convertible smash-up marked the first time that the IIHS had conducted tests specifically on open-topped vehicles.

The IIHS subjected 10 vehicles (all four-seat convertibles) to three crash tests each -- frontal offset, side impact and rear impact, the latter to gauge whiplash and spinal injuries.

The cars tested were the Audi A4, BMW 3 Series, Chrysler Sebring, Ford Mustang, Mitsubishi Eclipse, Pontiac G6, Saab 9-3, Toyota Camry Solara, Volkswagen Eos and Volvo C70. However, Mercedes-Benz's CLK was absent.

The Saab and Volvo earned the "Top Safety Pick" label from the IIHS, which praised the Swedes for their standard stability control, pop-up rollover bars and anti-whiplash protection. They were also lauded for their good performance in front, side and rear impacts.

Significantly, the 9-3 and C70 trumped not only Audi's A4-based Cabrio, but also BMW's all-new, hard-hatted 3 Series Convertible. Both the Teutons mustered only "marginal" ratings for side impact protection and "poor" results in the rear impact test.

Somewhat embarrassingly for the German pair, even the Chrysler Sebring and Mitsubishi Eclipse earned "good" ratings in the front and side impact tests.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen's Eos was rated "good" in front and side impact tests but "marginal" from the rear, while the Toyota Camry Solara (a model that we don't get here) was "good" up front, "acceptable" from the side and "poor" at the rear.

Engineering crashworthiness into convertibles presents a formidable challenge for car manufacturers, as the loss of the roof (a significant structural element) impacts on the integrity of the passenger cell. Carmakers attempt to compensate this by strengthening the A-pillars and chassis.

"High-speed crashes are violent events, and the roof of a hardtop helps to keep people's heads and arms from flailing outside the vehicle," says the IIHS.

"Roofs also provide protection if a vehicle rolls over. Data from real-world crashes indicate that the overall risk of death isn't higher in a convertible, but this doesn't mean there aren't any safety disadvantages."

The IIHS recommends buying a convertible with rollbars, which deploy automatically if sensors detect the possibility of a rollover.

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