Mk1 crash safety??

I know this maybe "a piece of string" question,but how does a mk1 rate regarding crash saftey?
This came to mind after finding out that my wife is pregnant. and thinking ahead,we need a car that doesnt fold into a small cube easily….I do love my 1980 gls and selling up would be a real shame!  

Thanks all.

Lee

They're safe enough if you don't crash.

In all seriousness, the big safety advancement has been airbags, and obviously the Mk1 Golf doesn't have those. In other respects, its only really a percentage worse than modern cars. The dash is padded, there's seatbelts, crumple zones, all the other safety stuff we take for granted. But NOT  - pre tensioners, side impact bars, ABS, traction control. and then there's the fact its smaller/lighter. This is also an advantage, it makes it more controllable at the limit of handling, ie just before you have an accident. So you may be able to drive around and avoid an accident, which would have otherwise occured in a modern car.

You need to drive it properly, ie be able to control the car in a skid, since it doesn't have ABS or traction control. There's no easy way to do this, you need to practise, get to know the car, and to be involved in driving the car at the limit. In fact probably the easiest way to gain this kind of experience is on a trackday.

See

The Mk1 Golf Owners Club

There's that piece of string!!

Or a second question I could ask is, do people feel comfortable with having thier youngsters in a car of this age?

Thanks

dont mind carrying ma mate and his kid going to shows, but i just keep an extra eye out, as i wouldnt want to be in a serious crash with one, unless caged and seam welded, but then i wouldnt be able to carry the kid with no back seat's. Park the car up and keep it as a toy with a HIC policy and get a bigger car fro you the misses and the kid

"Park the car up and keep it as a toy with a HIC policy and get a bigger car fro you the misses and the kid"

Im with you on that one Mick….but wife ""recommends"" one car is fine!

You definitely don't want to crash if you are with HIC.

At the end of the day most accidents can be avoided so if your being careful and keeping an eye out more then you will be able to notice what is going on around you and get out of it if need be.  Just get some bubble wrap and put it where airbags would usaully be.

sooooo.  the only real thing missing is an airbag!

however these should be switched off if you have a child seat in the car.

so thats not a problem.

and as for being more carefull with children in the car………………………we all do that anyway.


keep your speed down and your eyes open and don't be stupid and you'll be as safe as the economy :mrgreen:

You should try an old mini, sat about 4 inch off ground with about 18 inch of flimsey bonnet infront of you.

Would think a MK1 would only get 2 or 3 stars in a modern NCAP test.

One of the problems today is that every other vehicle is a 2 tonne 4x4 driven by a dum lady that lunches not a Ford esort or the aformentioned mini that would have been on the road when the MK1 was current.

The results of a crash with a large 4x4 will be 10 times worse than another normal 70s/80s car.

Having had one or two crashes in my life I can safely say the old veedub does pretty well, only thing better was a Fiat 127.

Liked this vid, kinda shows how far crash test safety has come on over the last decade.

 Fifth Gear - Renault Modus v Volvo 940 Crash Test - YouTube

I travel alot with my kids in the mk1, daily driver.
I have no concerns whatsoever, this is due to driving at correct speeds and being very aware of others on the road, also maintaining the car so i know there are no faults.
But if you feel insecure with wife expecing, i would suggest get another vehicle
Pete :wink:

MK1-400 you fancy coming along to a manchester meet?
See here:-
http://www.vwgolfmk1.org.uk/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=50982

As my dad always says "always expect the unexpected".

Being aware of what can happen Is always good.

Just watched the crash test video.  8O  Im shocked, I mean jaw dropped shocked.. I have had a couple of the old Volvos, I drive a 10 year S70 Saloon now. I would have thought the volvo would have come out of the other side of the Modus…. but no!

Best thing is to get a new, safe car but not everyone wants one or can afford one. I prefer old cars, Dare I say old Vauxhalls and Opels etc… Woulndt want to hit anything in these ones either.

I just work on the therory drive well, stay alert, antisipate other drivers and also remember they have modern brakes ABS and such, he will stop quicker than you so stay back a bit more than normal… Can still be safe just have to think about whats going on a bit more..

Its true to say newer cars will stop quicker, but the majority of the time is reaction time, so being alert is the best thing you can do really.

I'm not sure a newer car is really any safer than an old one, not in real the world they do have a lot of safety feature but that probably just makes you feel safer wether you actually are or not is another matter

personally i think saying stay alert and drive at the right speeds and you'll be fine is daft. The two bumps i have had i was rear ended by a van while sat at lights (no way to avoid it i was sat still) and the other one was someone parked at the side of the road pulled out and drove into the side of me with no warning whatsoever manged to avoid it being a really bad accident but still couldn't be avoided.
 
I know i'll prob get shot down for this (as i have in the past) but if you have a bad crash in a mk1 especcially if it involves a 4x4 you aint gonna come out of it brilliantly. i've owned my mk1 for 2 years and my little sis has been in it once for a mile journey and thats only because i was running late and didn't have time to walk to her school to get her.

Newer cars are just so much more advanced in the safety features they have but more importantly the design and the steels that are used in there design.
The advancement in the use of high stength steels like boron steel in specific areas of the shell just makes the passenger compartments far stonger then older cars. Like in that crash test video on the volvo you saw the roof kink and bow, you would not or very rarely see this happen on new vehicles as alot of this area is made with high strength steel. Also for example the new mondeo they use boron steel in the bumper reinforcer which when impacted distributes the impact along the front instead of the impact just bowing it and going into the engine compartment area and potentially causing damge to the passenger area.

But that said i still prefer my mk1 to drive and do still take my kids out in it, but most of the time they are in the missus`s newish car

Sorry to say that if you do have a serious high speed crash in a Mk1 and you hit a modern (last 5 years) car in that sort of fashion it will be game over.

The Mk1 was ahead of the game in its day, but it is now an almost 40 year old design.

There is a video somewhere that shows what happens when a Mk2 Golf is in collision with a Mk4 Golf in the same way as that Volvo.

The Mk4 comes out written off with airbags deployed but only minor 'injuries' to the crash dummies. The Mk2 dummies are 'dead'.

I don't want make everyone paranoid, but I consider very carefully nowadays whether or not to take the kids in the Golf. I would never take them during the rush hour, or on the school run. If they are in the Golf I am extremely vigilant for other bad driving.

Nowadays, compared to most other cars out there, a mk1 is a small thin metal box with lots of sharp edges. Be careful out there! There is always the 'other' driver - and stay away from 4x4s.

Cheers,

Drew.

i would have no issues taking my child in my car and regularly take members of my family out in it too (a 2 yr old a 5 yr old and an 11 yr old) Children are going to be subjected to a lot worse in their lives than the potential danger of a car crash, stone me if we were all worried about crashing in our mk1s they'd be in the garage all the time under cover and never used.

At the end of the day its everyone else you gotta worry about if your confident in your own reactions and driving ability.

Its not every day you or the millions of other road users go out with the intention of crashing your cars. I wouldnt worry about it until its happened.