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Comment by Theodores | Hacker News Reader

There is no such thing as bad publicity and here Tesla are back in the news again. Funny they don't have an advertising budget and here we are learning the lesson that Tesla safety is a cut above the rest even if the marketing claims are slightly off.

I am suspect of the safety of all cars that don't have rally/track style roll cages and four point harnesses (with fire extinguisher in easy reach). But I would go in a Tesla.

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You really feel you need that for typical car uses or were you joking? I can't see why I'd need a roll cage to do groceries - christ, I drive a motorcycle as my sole vehicle so I think we're on opposite ends of the risk spectrum.

I ride a bicycle. I don't go on motorways with it though.

We have all seen the crash test videos, we have all been driving at twice the speeds in those crash test videos. We have all stepped it on a little bit more to be travelling past the speed limit.

We have all 'rubber necked' at some ghastly accident on the other carriageway and wondered how so much carnage can happen on a perfectly straight road. A million people get killed on the roads globally every year.

On a motor racing event the medics and fire crew are minutes away, ready. There is no on-coming traffic. There are no people drunk or partially sighted on the road. The barriers and run-off areas have been tested. Helmets are mandatory. The road ahead is the same circuit it was two minutes ago, last time it was lapped. Features in the circuit are there to restrict top speed - chicanes etc.

Meanwhile, on the autobahn you can do the same speeds. Or, elsewhere you can find an overtaking car in your carriageway doing 70+ mph, combine that with your 'safe' 50 mph and imagine how that head on crash compares to the test videos that are at a fraction of the speed. Imagine how well your brain copes smashing into your skull in the impact. Just because everyone is driving along in all weather conditions tailgating the guy in front every day does not make it wonderfully safe. So yes I am serious about the need for a roll cage or a Tesla.

Cars have roll cages built into the frame of the vehicle. Thats why they don't crumple under their own weight if they roll. I don't know what kind of Mad Max world you're driving in but an external roll cage and a 4 point harness (as opposed to the 3 point harness already fitted in literally every car) seems like complete overkill for most use cases. Also motorway driving is generally the safest kind of driving, so while your story is certainly evocative I don't think it really justifies your claim that every car should have two roll cages. We don't put cow plows on most cars either, by your logic we probably should.

>cars that don't have rally/track style roll cages and four point harnesses (with fire extinguisher in easy reach)

So literally every car then.

No, not literally. There are a surprising number of cars on the road that are set up for events like autocross and such that have roll cages, etc. I've often seen these kinds of setups on small cars like Mazda Miatas. But, the point is, it's not just for race cars/track-only cars. Maybe you meant something other than "literally" but in case you didn't wanted to clarify that this is a relatively common thing in many circles.

I absolutely meant "literally". It's also a "relatively common thing" in "many circles" for people to modify their cars to have tea kettles installed in the dashboard but since no car ships from the factory like that it's insignificant enough to be completely discounted.

Yes, you can modify a stock car until it becomes a race car and then also drive that car on the road. But since no car ships from the factory like that it's insignificant enough to be completely discounted.

ah, this is one of those moving the goalposts things people talk about. You say one thing, someone comments on it, and suddenly you meant something much more restrictive. I don't see this one in the wild on HN that often.

You can order more than a few sports cars with roll cages from the factory. The distinction between road car and race car are blinkers, vin and tags. While you aren't likely to win Le Mons in your daily driver anymore, you sure can drive most race cars on the street.

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