Carbon Monoxide Hazards

The engine in your car is a source of carbon monoxide (often referred to as CO). There is no doubt that carbon monoxide is poisonous and can even kill you. Therefore, even though the levels of carbon monoxide produced by motor vehicles have been reduced over the years, it is imperative that we become aware of these risks and how to lessen them.

Carbon monoxide is deadly because, aside from it's toxicity, it is so easy to inhale. This is due to the fact that it has roughly the same density as, and mixes easily with, the air we already breathe. It is also very dificult to detect, as it is colorless, odorless, tasteless and non-irritating. If lucky, a person exposed to carbon monoxide may detect an odor from another by-product of the combustion process, but not from carbon monoxide itself. Symptoms may include headaches, dizziness, nausea, weakness, and even loss of consciousness and death.

When it comes to carbon monoxide poisoning, it is not merely the levels in the air that is important to gauge, but the time of exposure. Damage to the exhaust system may cause an emmision leak which could work itself into the passenger cabin. Therefore, even a leak you may find "minor" could pose a serious danger to you and your passengers. It is important to pay attention to the sound of the exhaust system of your vehicle, and to have it inspected immediately if you hear any change in it. Also, periodic inspections of your exhaust system, like at every oil change, can be a life saver. This is especially true in cold weather when the engine requires more fuel, thereby giving off more carbon monoxide emissions. You can find out more about the dangers of carbon monoxide such as more detailed symptoms, long term effects, treatments and much more here.

In addition to presence of damage to the exhaust system such as from an impact to the undercarriage (pot holes, rocks, etc.), and corrosion, we must also exercise common sense in preventing these emissions from entering the passenger cabin. An obvious example is not running the engine in an enclosed space such as a garage.

A not so obvious example is driving a vehicle equiped with a rear tailgate with the rear window open. If you drive the vehicle with the tailgate open and other windows closed, you run the risk that carbon monoxide from the exhaust emission may be "sucked in"and drawn into the passenger compartment. This would create a dangerous condition for all passengers, especially in a long trip.

Buckle up? Or not?

We all know that a particular deadly oversight on the part of the driver is the failure to use the seatbelt restraints provided (according to the DOT, seat belt use remains at 81%, virtually unchanged since 2003). Remember, that air bags are meant only as a supplementary restraint system (hence, SRS), not the primary. As anyone who has ever gone through an owner's manual knows, the primary restraint system in your vehicle is the seat belts. It is through the use of the seat belts that you can better reduce severity of injury and increase your chances of surviving a crash. In fact, federal law mandates motor vehicle manufacturers to install seat belt use reminders. Yes, you have all heard them.

Why then, I wonder, do federal transportation officials make the installation of seat belts optional in school buses?

I don't understand. Are they helpful in limiting injury and death, or not? If they are, and federal regulation mandates that the car itself reminds us to wear them, why then should not the kids that ride in their buses to school have the option of buckling up?

One of the arguments against installing seat belts in school buses is that they are not as necessary in a school bus as they are in a regular non-commercial vehicle, since the kids are seated close together, the seats are well padded and the backs are high. So it is not even that they would not help, but that they would not help as much.

You are thinking that in a frontal accident it is much safer to impact your head against another tall well padded seat back than it is to do it against a dashboard, steering wheel, or windshield. True. But if there were no protection benefits to seat belts in these conditions, why mandate their installation in rear seats for any vehicles? Also, what about side impacts and rollovers the school bus may be involved in? Not all crashes are frontal, you know, we have all seen those in the news.

Finally, not giving the kids even the option to put on their seat belts sends the wrong message and undermines the importance of seat belt use later on. Maybe by making installation of seat belts in school buses, the DOT can save millions later on in buckle up campaigns!

Car Seats

We all want to make sure that our baby is as safe as possible in the event of an auto accident, but there is so much data on car crashes and car seats that you just do not know where to start. What car seat to use, what position in the vehicle to install it and facing where? There are too many options, so of course it will be confusing.

I think that it is important to understand basic facts first.

The safest spot in the vehicle is almost always the middle rear seat. This is the spot that is most protected from frontal impacts. In the moment of impact, all objects inside the vehicle will travel towards the point of impact. Frontal, or nearly frontal impacts are the most common, since that is the direction the vehicle is traveling in. Any rear seat is safer (in most instances) than any front seat, however the rear window seats can be dangerous in the event of a lateral collision. Therefore, the rear middle seat is the safest in most cases.

An infant or toddler should never be positioned behind a frontal air bag. Air bag deployment, while definitively very helpful in limiting severity and increasing survivability for adults and teenagers, is a violent event, and babies, toddlers and small children are better off being well restrained and away from their reach. Again, the rear middle seat is the furthest away from both frontal and lateral seat belts.

The people over at the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that all infants ride in rear-facing car seats (in the back seat of course) until they are both one year old and weigh at least 20 pounds. I recommend you visit their web site, where you will find the best guide I have seen regarding car seat use, including car seat descriptions by manufacturer. You will also find contact information and links to most car seat manufacturers. Make sure you also visit carseat.org, which also provides very useful information, including a comprehensive glossary of technical terms you might encounter difficulties with.

Although with the LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) system an attempt to standardize installation of car seat was made, regrettably there is still confusion due to the variation in motor vehicle and car seat makes. After carefully reviewing both the vehicle's Owner's Manual and the Car Seat manufacturers' instructions, contact a Child Passenger Safety (CPS) Technician. To find the nearest CPS Technician to you, you can call toll-free at 866/SEATCHECK (866/732-8243). If you are reading this blog, you obviously have access to the web, in which case I recommend you visit www.seatcheck.org. All you do is type in your zip code, and you will be provided with a list of CPS Technicians near to you. It is very easy.

Finally, you really need to research if the car seat your are looking to buy has been involved in a product recall. This information is easy to locate, and there is simply no excuse to not do it. For this information you may call toll-free888/DASH-2-DOT (888/327-4236). Again, if you are reading this, I recommend you visit the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) web site for this information.

Welcome to the blog!

Through this space, I intend to discuss and share my opinion on different automotive safety related issues, both current and more remote. My interests range from safety related regulation, to human factors, to design and/or manufacture issues, and how these have an effect on us.

Over the better part of a decade, I have had the opportunity to review and study hundreds of accidents involving most auto manufacturers. I have dealt with assertions related to brake defects, restraints (both seat belts and air bags), roof crush, lack of stability, sudden acceleration, glazing, steering, and on and on... These experiences have shown me that there is great need for educating the consumer and public at large, an education to which I intend to contribute to through this blog.

I welcome all your comments, advice and/or criticism. Keep posted!