Worried that the trend towards smaller cars in the United States is going to result in more injuries? It's a rational concern, especially for those who are used to driving in full-size cars, trucks and SUVs and are normally surrounded by two or more tons of metal. But, light weight does not necessarily mean that a car isn't safe. Proving this once again is Nick Chambers, a blogger for Gas 2.0 who inadvertently crashed his little Toyota Yaris into a dirt embankment and rolled it three times. Judging from the pictures, this was a pretty extreme crash, but Chambers walked away with only minor injuries.

Small cars must be engineered properly to retain their safety credentials, but it's not impossible. Remember that all cars go through the same safety testing, regardless of their size. Crumple zones, airbags (you might want to make sure your Yaris has them), anti-lock brakes, stability control and the like all do their jobs and are standard on nearly every car sold in the States. Plus, as many drivers make the switch from big to small in the name of economy, the chances of meeting a nearly immovable object on the highway will only be reduced. Of course, we wouldn't recommend trying it for yourself or anything.

[Source: gas2.0 via Instapundit]

Small cars aren't necessarily unsafe, as good engineering and quality materials can go a long way towards making up for the size disadvantage that they face in many accidents. Sometimes, though, corners can be cut in order to save a few bucks, and the U.K. agency Thatcham suggests that the seats in small city cars could use some help.

"City cars are not equipped to protect their occupants' necks when they have to absorb the crash energy from larger, heavier vehicles which combined with poor seat design makes whiplash far more likely. Good seat design is not something that should be inherently linked to higher value cars and this latest set of results will hopefully act as a catalyst for vehicle manufacturers to look at improving seat and head restraints design within this important and growing sector," says Matthew Avery, a research manager at Thatcham.

Because city cars spend much of their time in traffic, which is where whiplash is most likely, these latest tests indicate that much more work is required from manufacturers. Not a single mini-car tested performed well enough to earn a "good" whiplash protection rating, while the smart fortwo and Renault Twingo were the only mini's rated as "acceptable."

[Source: Thatcham]