155
US transportation department unveils first female-modeled crash test dummy
(www.theguardian.com)
this post was submitted on 22 Nov 2025
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"And here we see the seatbelt sliding sideways to squash one boob and cut into the side of the female dummy's neck because it's not sufficiently adjustable. Meanwhile we notice that in order to be able to fully depress the brake pedal, the female dummy must position the seat so close to the steering column that the airbag will likely cause severe injury."
They've been told these things by actual living women for decades but maybe they'll find it harder to ignore the proof from the plastic dummy.
They would have to design and make two cars of each model, one for women and one for men. Where's the profit in that when it's easier to just ignore those issues.
Volvo tried at one point.
Or just incorporate more modular designs. Steering columns are only made for the middle ~70% of drivers. Anyone outside of one standard deviation on the bell curve will struggle to get their steering column adjusted properly. It will either be too short, (meaning they have to reach too far for the steering wheel, and the airbag won’t fully cushion their impact), or too long, (meaning they’re cramped when driving, and dangerously close to the airbag when it deploys).
For instance, I’m tall. I have proportionally long legs. In order to be able to properly reach the pedals without my knees next to my ears, I need my car seat basically all the way back. But that means I’m constantly reaching for the steering wheel, which doesn’t extend far enough to be comfortable. It also means that if I hit something, my airbag basically won’t do anything. I may rub my face on it, but the vast majority of the stop is going to be handled by the seatbelt. Meaning my left shoulder and collarbone will take the brunt of the force instead of having it evenly distributed across my torso. It also means I’ll be more likely to develop whiplash, as my head won’t be sufficiently cushioned by the airbag until after it has already snapped almost all the way forward.
The profit is in the pink tax: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_tax
I think when it comes to gendered cars there would be more of a "blue" tax I guess. There are just a lot more guys obsessed with cars whan women
You are using quotes, but what are you quoting? Because it's not from the article that I can see.
Are you quoting yourself?
I agree with the observation, but it's kind of misleading to post it as a quote.
They were using quotes to write in the voice of a hypothetical character. The tone signaled that to me pretty much immediately and I'd be a bit surprised to find any significant number of people took this as an actual quote.
In that case the normal thing to do is to lead with
Narrator: ...
Not to make a false quote.
Pretty moronic that I'm downvoted for pointing out it's not actually a quote of the article.
It doesn't matter if it's obvious to the majority, it's the ones it's NOT obvious to that count.
The tone made it very obvious it was not a real quote.
Nothing else was needed.
Tone is not something that everyone can pick up equally. If you have an option to make it clearer, why are you people so determined that it mustn't be changed?
That presumes people have read the article, and can see the difference in tone.
As a Dane there would be nothing wrong in having a similar tone in an article here. The same goes for many other countries.
Not everything is USA or Anglo-style body shame double standards, where saying boop makes things 21+.
And requires parental warnings more than showing people killing each other.
Could as easily have been a tongue in cheek comment.
I hear you and basically agree*~. Tone can be tough to manage on either end.
I think the downvotes are also a tonal thing. People are taking you as being overly-critical, though Im pretty youre genuinely trying to be helpful. People, am I right?
Edit: had a half-thought or so more on the topic. Felt like sharing.
*~ We have tools that help us distinguish tone and meaning, but they are only helpful when people actually understand and use them appropriately. I am of the camp that language, syntax, and the like are all as mercurial as the creatures dealing in them. This means that definitions and use-cases will inevitably change over time, sometimes in ways that are useful and sometimes in ways that are not. I am the type inclined toward embracing this change as it simply seems too inevitable to deny, though I do sincerely agree that it adds fresh layers of potential confusion with each new iteration and off-shoot.
Im not trying to say anyone should give up on upholding literary standards, but I do feel strongly that this is a losing battle in almost all ways. Especially so after the advent of new media. Language and culture grow in their distinction and breadth at an almost equal rate, so having long-distance communication splinter culture so thoroughly has and will continue to alter how we use language at a similar pace. It has been said by some people more well informed than myself that we are not ready for the changes our modern innovations are ushering in, and with that thought I can not find any good reason to disagree.