this post was submitted on 22 Nov 2025
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US transportation department unveils first female-modeled crash test dummy (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 1 month ago by HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works to c/news@lemmy.world
47 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

The transportation department has unveiled a first crash test dummy in the US modeled specifically on female anatomy, a move officials say is meant to close decades of safety gaps in vehicle testing.

Sean Duffy, the US transportation secretary, unveiled the THOR-05F, an advanced female design for a crash-test dummy with upgraded technical specifications. According to the transportation department, the dummy will be incorporated into federal vehicle crash testing once a final rule is published.

Although men make up the majority of annual car-crash victims, women are more likely to die in collisions of comparable severity. Women are also 73% more likely than men to sustain serious injuries in a crash, according to studies. In addition, they face a higher risk of specific trauma, including pelvis and liver injuries.

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[–] Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works 113 points 1 month ago (3 children)

"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.

[–] ratofkryll@sh.itjust.works 18 points 1 month ago

Yep. I'm a 5'5" woman with short legs and a long torso. In order to fully depress the clutch on my car, I have to have the seat nearly all the way forward. There are plenty of other signs that my car was built for a 6' tall man, but that's a biggie.

[–] falseWhite@lemmy.world -2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (3 children)

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.

Edit: Lemmers don't get sarcasm :(

[–] mic_check_one_two@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

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.

[–] This2ShallPass@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Volvo tried at one point.

[–] Mondoshawan@lemmy.zip -1 points 1 month ago

The car’s exterior eliminated the traditional hood, removing the need for drivers to open it for routine maintenance. Instead, a service center would handle all checks and adjustments, and the car’s onboard system would notify owners when servicing was due.

Honestly surprised some auto manufacturer hasn't tried this in a production vehicle

[–] frongt@lemmy.zip 0 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The profit is in the pink tax: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_tax

[–] Anivia@feddit.org -2 points 1 month ago

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

[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world -5 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

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.

[–] kelpie_returns@lemmy.world 26 points 1 month ago (1 children)

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.

[–] Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Hey Buffalox, coming in later and seeing all the downvotes, I'm sorry, you don't deserve them. I was deliberately using phrasing that English or American people would recognize from certain kinds of public instruction short films or nature shows, and also in comic parodies of those films. Specifically, "And here we see..." as the opener. As a Dane, that might not be familiar to you. And I used quotation marks to indicate I was doing the (usually rather pompous) voice of that kind of narrator.

But I probably should have prefaced it.

Oddly, you'll notice in my history my prefacing actual quotes with

From the article:

followed by the quote and then

From me:

for my comment.

[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world -1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Thanks, I must admit I find it strange why my post is so controversial?
It seems some people tend to forget that people come here from all over the world, despite the name of the server is lemmy.world.

[–] Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Looking at the thread, I bet some people didn't downvote your initial comment at first, then kept reading and got to "moronic" and your off-topic little rant about "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."

And that's when they went back and downvoted your whole string.

By the way, there's nothing in my comment that would be NSFW even in the US.

[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world -2 points 1 month ago

Then you bet wrong, because the downvote ratio was way higher before I wrote the other posts.

[–] Zaktor@sopuli.xyz 68 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I'm surprised they didn't cancel the project for being woke.

[–] SuiXi3D@fedia.io 29 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Nah, they'll misconstrue the data. They'll likely use it to just say that women shouldn't drive or something stupid like that.

[–] JustAnotherKay@lemmy.world 11 points 1 month ago

“It’s too expensive to care for female driver regulations, so we’ll put a disclaimer that our vehicle is only designed for men and be absolved of all legal requirements”

[–] ameancow@lemmy.world 11 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I can guarantee there are current members of this administration who want to go watch a female anything get smashed in a car crash. It was probably their idea.

Stephen Miller. I am talking specifically about Stephen Miller. No need to dance around shit anymore.

[–] XeroxCool@lemmy.world 34 points 1 month ago (1 children)

This just in: women are not just slightly smaller men. Difference in spine/height proportion, hip joint location, hip joint angle, fat distribution, center of mass, and breasts, just to name some things off the top of my head.

All those plastic Halloween skeletons are anatomically male, by the way. Really, nearly all depicted skeletons and skulls are male. The hip/pelvis is reliable by looking at whether the hip goes out more sideways than downwards and whether a baby skull would fit through the pelvic hole. The jawline is another indicator, with males having square jawlinse and females having pointed chins, as viewed from the front. I don't know about you but when I first learned that, I was shocked at how feminine the sample skull looked. Yes, obviously, genetics play a role in jawline so it's not a deadset sign, which is why the pelvis is used more consistently.

[–] bomibantai@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Can I get a bisexual person to confirm this?

[–] Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world 5 points 1 month ago

Sure, I’ll just ask my partners to strip down to their skeletons real quick. Brb

[–] HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 month ago

A non-binary person would be a better source.

[–] Eq0@literature.cafe 24 points 1 month ago (2 children)

One day maybe we can also consider pregnancy and obesity? But at least it’s one step in the right direction.

[–] notoftenthat@sh.itjust.works 10 points 1 month ago

Pepperidge Farm remembers.

1996: Automobile crash simulation with the first pregnant crash test dummy

[–] SanndyTheManndy@lemmy.kya.moe 2 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I wonder how much safer being obese makes a car crash. All that extra cushioning.

[–] frongt@lemmy.zip 5 points 1 month ago

I'm not sure that outweighs the extra mass, slowed reactions, or limited range of motion.

[–] smh@slrpnk.net 1 points 1 month ago

I've heard obesity is a protective element in older age: less likely to break bones and such even in a fall. I'm also curious about the statistics for fat folks in crashes.

[–] mrgoosmoos@lemmy.ca 16 points 1 month ago (1 children)

holy shit, finally. I can't believe it's taken this long.

well, actually, I can. doesn't the same test department give bright white LED headlights higher safety scores, despite them blinding oncoming drivers?

[–] Fedizen@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago

By 2070 the transportation department will start adding child visibility to the safety ratings.

I'm sure they'll start testing headlights for blinding people by 2130

[–] frustrated_phagocytosis@fedia.io 16 points 1 month ago

Knowing this administration, they'll focus on reviving that old myth about cars causing uteruses to fall out and ban women from using them

[–] BotsRuinedEverything@lemmy.world 14 points 1 month ago (2 children)

If it's got boobs someone will eventually fuck it.

[–] Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

I hate it because it’s true.

It’s evitable that the crash test dummy will become a smash test dummy.

Then again, I have zero doubt somebody’s tried to fuck the male dummies, too. People (in general) are predictable in some ways.

[–] BotsRuinedEverything@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

Lmafo @ smash test dummy

[–] Fedizen@lemmy.world 3 points 1 month ago

I mean somebody probably fucked the man test dummy as well.

[–] WizardofFrobozz@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 month ago

Her name is Ellen Reid and she’s a fucking saint

[–] DontRedditMyLemmy@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago

Sure, but does she get equal pay?

[–] beemikeoak@lemmynsfw.com 3 points 1 month ago

This just in! The transportation department is finally addressing the penis problem.

How do you hold a penis during a 50G crash. It could be in the order of a 200lb penis. Engineers have designed a new pelmet. Like a helmet for the head, a pelmet holds the penis safely until all car parts have come to a stop.

The titmet is in the works, it is expected to save countless tits. It will be housed in the boobmet so that together many fully functional breasts can be saved for transplant.

Accordingly thr pelmet has already saved 3 penises which have all been transplanted on to wealthy people who had penile failure. The healthcare industry has welcomed the pelmet with open arms. The pelmet will even predict an accident and alert a nearby hospital if the requested color, length, girth and ball diameter are a full match to the customer's requests! The customers can reasonably pay for a nearby donor to have a car cras...accident at a convenient time. This is revolutionizing healthcare!