New car safety

My friend for the last 50 years was on his way home from Marco Island yesterday. As he was driving through Bowling Green KY on I-65 a car struck him in the drivers door and knocked him out of control into a concrete wall. The advances in vehicle safety are really remarkable. Mark survived this with no cuts or broken bones, but he is a bit dinged up with bruises and soreness. You can see the imprint of the concrete wall on the hood in front of the driver. Not long ago a crash at highway speed into a concrete wall would not be survivable. Mark traded his SRX on a Ford Edge about 6 months ago. He's happy to be able to buy another one, and I am hapy to still have him as a friend and a neighbor in Manitowish Waters WI. I believe the result would have been different had it happened in my tow car

and that's why i stay off i-65

I"m not a big IIHS fan, but this video is a good example of safety improvements over the past 50 years...

We have had the airbag discussion in my car club. Our Shelby Dodge cars were built between 84 and and 91. I have an 89 Chrysler LeBacon. It was one of the first cars with a standard airbag. The issue is, armed with the knowledge of the Takata failures due to age and moisture, is it safer to disable my 27 year old airbag or to leave it active. Another issue is seat belt degradation due to age and UV. One member had a very bad crash several years ago and almost didn't survive due to skull fractures, facial and chest injuries. His seat belt broke in the collision. I am in the same situation as many drivers. My daily driver is 12 years old and has 202,000 miles. For the first time I have considered buying a new car not because my car is worn out or needs maintenance, I like it and everything works perfectly, but the advancements in safety combined with the uncertainty that the aging safety equipment will function properly is a concern.

Sorry to hear about the XJ Gary. It was very nice.