first gen crash safety help please

hi all long story short
i love early vans but i am reluctant to drive one and lose my legs in a frontal crash! has anybody here ever beefed up the front end for some protection without ruining the vans looks? forward controls are notorious for this issue

Warm up your drums brakes if sitting for awhile or get disk brakes and do not tailgate! Has worked for me alot of years now.
66 Falcon
67 Epup

I missed you have one post, Welcome here.

thanks for the reply but come on the real world doesnt work like that does it its like saying dont worry about it iv never had a crash so i dont wear a helmet on a bike or seat belts in a car
replys like buy something modern if your worried dont cut it either.
ive seen/heard enough vw horror stories to take notice. i was going to buy a second gen for this issue but theyre too wide and the seating area layout seems worse than a 1st gen

when your time is up = Its Just =UP!! If you are worried -get a Volvo station wagon or some new car with 76 airbags. These vans are not for the worried folks or ralph nader either.Happy Vannin to all

i'm with you twinpilot, if your worried about a crash get a tank!!

I have a snazzy piece of literature that I am currently having scanned that talks about the double walled nature of the nose of a 1st gen van. It is a factory instructional piece that discusses front crashes, how to replace the nose skin, and a host of other items relevant to service personnel concerned with these brand new vans (1964). Also included is some cool info comparing the 1st gen. Chevys to the Corvair vans they were replacing.

I saw a Corvair Greenbrier once that had hit a telephone pole head on- centered on the nose. The front end was smashed in for sure, but by the looks of it, the driver might have walked away. The front floor area was intact and looked like it could have been worse. Although lack of seat belts might have kicked my theory, this thread is not about lack of seat belts...

I will post the literature scan as soon as I get it back.

hi ben
thankyou for the usefull responce i love my old cars but i really love my legs! a quick look on u tube for vw bus crashes etc will explain my worries. i was thinking maybe some kind of frame up from the chassis rails and around the inside front skin kind of like a bull bar / cow catcher? but around the inside with some triangulation.

this may cause other issues but its got to be better than a front end as tough as a wet cigeratte packet!

modified,
I mounted a 4" square piece of stock inside my bumper. It did two things. Gave some serious re-enforcement to the bumper and pushed the bumper out 4". Both will help in the event of a front-ender... I did this without changing the appearance of the front end much. Most people, even early vanners probably wouldn't even notice.




And the truth being said that if you have a "Head-on" in "any" vehicle, survival is less than 10% anyway. Not just these vans. Also for the most part accidents in these vans generally happen due to poor judgement, poor maintenance or road conditions. Which is true for all vehicles but these because of their age require a little more attention.

I have had folks come up to me and ask over the years "aren't you scared of having an accident? I mean your right there!"

I always laugh and say " Yeah, I'd be the first to arrive! Wouldn't I?"

Safety is always in our minds when we drive these old vans, it has to be. There old Like some of us! You just have to be smart and drive it like it's an old van! And enjoy it! Their NOT muscle cars! Don't think you can drive it like one...

If your van is safe, the roads are safe and your a safe and smart driver driving these vans is awesome. But if this does not describe you and your van then I'd be scared too....

**Funny thing is the last person who asked me: "aren't you scared?" Told me he thought it was to dangerous and then got on his "Motorcycle" and rode away..... "Without a Helmet!!!".. Hahaha!

Go figure?

Dan

If you look at modern crash safety, they do two things; improve the crush zone so it collapses in a controlled manner. This does not apply to these vans, there is NO crush zone!
The second is to strengthen the area around the passengers. You could build a roll cage that extends forward to the pedal area and under the dash to prevent intrusion into the area where your legs are. You should also mount the seat and belts to this.
Talk to a race shop in your area, either drag or circle track. Remind them that you need access to the engine and be able to get in and out of the van. Don't forget side impact either.

i just dont understand why anyone would worry about a crash in one of these vans, its more protection than a motorcycle, infact you can get run over crossing the street, if you drive defenceively and make smart judgement you'll be ok, i think its worth the risk to drive one, theres nothing like it,

dodge man wrote:i just dont understand why anyone would worry about a crash in one of these vans, its more protection than a motorcycle, infact you can get run over crossing the street, if you drive defenceively and make smart judgement you'll be ok, i think its worth the risk to drive one, theres nothing like it,

You have to accept that not all people think the same. We see a van and say "How cool it that?" Others view the world through their rose colored safety glasses from the safety of the little bubble and when the they see anything (Van or anything else for that matter) they first and foremost see every & all possible danger it could possibly pose to them. And immediately rule it out and run back to their bubble! And that's OK. To each their own. I'm a "Early Vanner!" That's what I am. I spend my time "Living" not just worrying about being "Alive!.......


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*** There is this little thing called "Your Comfort Zone".
-When your inside of it, your "Alive".
-When your outside of it, your "Living".
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you got that right dan , the only thing better than cruising in a van is sex, and at my age i try to do both as mutch as possible, lol

Hahahaha! I'm with ya brother!!!

I'm so woried about a front on colision that we have only driven our 64 less than 8,000 miles in the two years that it has been on the road. I guess we just don't like to live dangerously!!!
Lester

I drive my 65 Sportvan six out of seven days a week!

No worries! Lots of Thumbs-Up's everywhere I go, every-time I go!

Down in Florida, you just have to be wary of knuckles and blue hair just over the top of the steering wheels...

I had thought about putting some heavy flat bar across the inside of the nose and adding some welded pipe from there down to the frame as an added safety measure. But now that I have driven mine around, and into the city and back, I'm thinking it will be just fine. If you drive one of these old girls like a sports car, your going to get into trouble real quick. These old vans and trucks cannot compete against tha ABS Equipt NEW Vehicles that can corner and stop on a dime. If your worried about the safety of cab forward design, start off slow. Stay out of the 5 oclock rush hour and drive on the weekend untill you get the feel of your ride, then venture out a liitle more untill your are completley comfortable with it. That's just my 2 cents.

I had a 64G10 back when I was in my late teens and remember driving it around without a worry in the world. Recently picked up a 65G10 now in my forties and found myself second guessing and driving like a new driver all over again. Sure is fun to drive though,especially when I have the only one in town. Now if I can only find an open drive-in movies I would be set.

robs65chevy,
Glad to hear you haven't lost your love for these old van. Except for Donivan who lives in "Van-Heaven". Most of us live in "One-Van" towns and enjoy all the attention as well.

Welcome aboard!

Dan

It sounds like someone has lived in calf . to long. you know if you take a nap you might not wake up. so don't do that. It all comes down to if you are worried about it then don't do it. when these were built the speed limits were 75.mph. no power steering. bias tires and recaps to boot. no disc brakes. no air bags. I have a 70 dodge challenger 440 six pac with about a 6 foot hood and frame and the way i drive that lighting up the tires in all 4 gears i think my wife would rather ride in the van,

Well sadly enough if you get a front end hit that clears the frame rail height then you are in big trouble. As you already know there is nothing above that but sheet metal!

When manufacturers build in safety or crash items they are always rigorously tested to ensure they act as they are supposed to during a crash scenario. To those that are contemplating adding some type of crash barrier make certain that a lot of thought goes into it to ensure it reacts as it should and not the opposite!

I am by trade a autobody tech and for many years now have worked in the collision insurance industry and I have seen some god awful things happen to fabricated work.

kgdb

chester42 wrote:I'm so woried about a front on colision that we have only driven our 64 less than 8,000 miles in the two years that it has been on the road. I guess we just don't like to live dangerously!!!
Lester

If you're so worried about safety and collisions, why are you driving a classic? That is an inherent risk in using out-dated technology, and some would argue that it's part of the charm.

Like everyone keeps saying, make sure that it is in proper working order, maybe upgrade to disk brakes and add 3-point seat belts, and drive defensively and in a way that you and your vehicle can handle. Above all, if you're worried about head-on collisions, DON'T SPEED OR TAILGATE!!

I think the only reasonable response to the question is the roll-cage idea. The van simply doesn't have anything to protect you in a serious front collision. We all know that and 99% of us live with that - I do it by mostly staying at lower speeds.

But if you really want to do something, build a cage around the seating area and get some serious belts to hold you inside of it.

your right mike about roll cage, but that would take away from the joy of the ride thinking i hope this roll cage works, better watch my speed hope theres no drunk drivers on the road today, i say if your going to worry about a crash, dont ever get in one of these,!!