Featured Image Credit: Georgia Public Safety Training Center
Topics: Cars, Health, News, World News
Kit Roberts
Topics: Cars, Health, News, World News
There are many things you can do in a car which make it safer for you and everyone else.
Then there are the things you can do which make sure that you will end up with some pretty bad injuries.
Whether it's not wearing a seatbelt or not maintaining your vehicle properly, there are plenty of ways to make things worse. But one in particular could make things a lot nastier if you are unfortunate enough to be involved in a crash.
This is, of course, putting your feet up on the dashboard when the car is moving.
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It might seem harmless, especially for passengers on long journeys, but it's actually a great way to ensure that you're going to wake up in hospital with your feet pointing the wrong way.
When a car crashes, you come to a very sudden stop (obviously).
That means that you and anything else loose in the car is thrown forward until you make contact with something in front of you, which is hopefully the air bag.
Combined with a seatbelt, the airbag is designed to make you decelerate more gently.
So, rather than being turned into pavement jam, you can walk away with a few minor scrapes.
It's worth adding that airbags themselves can be lethal when not used with a seatbelt, as they can result in cracked ribs and punctured lungs. And that's if you're sitting in your seat properly!
Now, let's imagine that you're driving along and have your feet on the dash, and then stop suddenly.
Rather than the slowed impact being spread over your torso with the airbag and seatbelt, your extended legs take the brunt of the impact.
You might be familiar with a 'crumple zone', which is designed to be crushed and slow the impact.
Well, now your legs are your crumple zone.
The result is very clearly illustrated in a 2019 video with a crash test dummy, as part of a demonstration conducted by the Georgia Public Safety Training Center.
The dummy has its legs positioned on the dash board before the vehicle impacts with a truck in front. What follows is enough to make anyone wince with second-hand pain.
It happens so fast as to be barely visible, but the dummy's leg is thrown round in a windmill motion by the knee.
That would inflict some serious damage to your leg.
But that's not it though.
When it settles it seems fine at first - the leg is back where it was, everything is fine. That is, until you realise that the foot is pointing the wrong way.
So please, do not put your feet on the dashboard.