By Leow Ju-Len

A NEW crash test conducted by the USA-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has rated 73 different seats available in 63 cars sold in the States.

As with many things safety-related, the Swedes came out tops. Seats in all Volvo sedan models (S40, S60 and S80), as well as those in the Saab 9-2X and 9-3, were given the highest rating of ‘Good’.

That’s more impressive than it sounds. The IIHS found that only eight seats were ‘Good’, 16 were ‘Acceptable’ and 19 were rated ‘Marginal’. The rest effectively flunked, receiving the ranking of ‘Poor’.

“It’s obvious that some automakers are doing a better job than others of designing seats and head restraints to protect their customers’ necks in rear crashes,” says Adrian Lund, chief operating officer the IIHS.

When a car is struck from behind, the resultant forward jerk can leave an unsupported head lagging behind the torso, causing neck injury. In the US alone, such injuries account for US$7 billion in insurance claims. “The key to reducing whiplash injury risk is to keep the head and torso moving together,” says Mr Lund.

The IIHS first measured the seats for geometry, meaning whether the head restraints were designed to offer proper support, then conducted a sled test that simulated a rear-end collision at 32km/h.

About a week before the results were announced, Volvo safety engineer John-Fredrik Gronvall told CarBuyer he was fairly confident that Volvo’s seats would do well. The company’s ‘WHIPS’ system uses a special hinge in the seats to reduce the forces acting on an occupant’s upper body in a crash.

Saab’s Active Head Restraint system pushes the headrest up and towards the head. Insurance data shows that Saabs and Volvos made after such systems became available saw a reduction in injury claims compared to older models predating WHIPS and AHR.

“The designs are different, but the result is the same,” says Mr Lund. “This is what we want every automaker to do.” Audi, Volkswagen, Subaru are some carmakers which have begun to make active head restraints available on new models.

For full results of the test, log on to www.highwaysafety.org.