. PAG Offers Excitement, Safety In New Convertibles
Photo: Volvo
Volvo
C70
Premium car buyers
looking for safety as well as a stylish driving experience have
a choice of two new convertibles from the Premier Automobile Group
(PAG), the 2006 Volvo C70 and the 2007 Jaguar XK convertible.
While each
car is unique to its particular brand, both share a safety
innovation unique to these PAG vehicles called the Rollover
Protection System.
Head injuries
are one of the most common dangers in a rollover accident,
according to the National Highway Safety Transportation
Administration (NHSTA). The Rollover Protection System adds
an extra level of protection to vehicles without a fixed
roof.
The system begins
with a series of sensors.
"Rollover sensors monitor
a variety of different factors such as vehicle speed, whether the
wheels are on the ground, etc.," said Kent Ellis, product marketing
manager for Jaguar North America. "If the system determines that
a rollover is imminent, the Rollover Protection System is deployed."
The system consists
of two aluminum arches recessed behind the rear passenger seats.
A solid-state gyro sensor system monitors the vehicle, and if it
senses the onset of a rollover accident, deploys the arches to a
height above the heads of rear passengers.
"The Rollover Protection
System in the new C70 is pyrotechnically charged so the bars deploy
in half the time of the old car," said James Hope, product communications
manager for Volvo North America. "The system can deploy in about
60 milliseconds."
Photo: Jaguar
XK
Cabriolet
With the hoops in the
rear and a reinforced windshield structure in the front, a rollover
"cage" is created over the passenger compartment to help protect
the heads of passengers who are wearing seat belts.
If the roof is up in
both vehicles, the hoops deploy straight through the rear window.
Each arch features a hardened tip to break through the glass.
"It should also be noted that
the system does not deploy unless a rollover is definitely occurring," Ellis
said.
The second element of rollover
protection is the reinforced windshield structure. "Without a fixed roof,
the demands on the windscreen pillars -- the so-called A-posts -- are even
stricter," said Ingrid Skogsmo, head of the Volvo Cars Safety Centre. "Each
of the A-posts in the all new Volvo C70 is dimensioned to withstand more
than twice the car's weight in the unlikely event that the car rolls over."
The A-posts on the XK are supported
at the instrument panel with a strong aluminum casting and reinforced with
a thick wall aluminum extrusion in the center. Indeed, one of the XK's signature
features is its unique all-aluminum construction. The all-aluminum monocoque
body structure also provides torsional rigidity, the rigidity of a vehicle
during twisting motions, an important factor in the vehicle's performance
and handling.
The Volvo also introduces
a unique retractable hard-top roof.
"The C70 is the first true
four-passenger convertible with a hard-top," Hope said. "Until now, all
hard-top convertibles feature two-piece clam shell designs like the Merecedes
SL and SLK."
The three-piece steel top is
driven by an electric motor and three pumps and stack on top of one another
in the trunk.
The C70 features reinforced
front and side members, doors and sills to compensate for the lack of fixed
roof, estimated to provide twice the torsional rigidity as the previous
C70. In addition, the steel roof adds 15 percent more structural rigidity
over the previous C70 with its soft top when the convertible is in its coupe
mode.
Both the Jaguar XK and the
Volvo C70 include a number of other safety features, assuring that premium
car buyers in search of a stylish drive can also have a safe drive. (By
Mike Thomas, FCN)
