Evaluation Of The Rollover Propensity Of 15 Passenger Vans

Fifteen-passenger vans, which make up about 0.25 percent of the passenger vehicle fleet in the United States, are frequently used to transport school sports teams, van pools, church groups, and other groups. Although they are involved in a proportionate number of fatal accidents compared to their percentage in the fleet, they are involved in a higher number of single-vehicle accidents involving rollovers than are other passenger vehicles. Various factors have been associated with 15-passenger van rollover, particularly occupancy level and vehicle speed. Fully loading or nearly loading a 15-passenger van causes the center of gravity to move rearward and upward, which increases its rollover propensity and could increase the potential for driver loss of control in emergency maneuvers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has been evaluating vehicle rollover for several years. The agency has initiated rulemaking activities concerning vehicle rollovers, established a rollover resistance rating system, and is currently examining dynamic testing procedures; however, these programs have not been extended to 15-passenger vans. As a result of this safety report, the National Transportation Safety Board issued safety recommendations to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and to the manufacturers of 15-passenger vans.

As a consequence of NTSB Safety Recommendations H-02-26 and H-02-28, NHTSA performed a study to investigate the effects different load conditions may have on the dynamic rollover resistance of 15-passenger vans. e two vans used in this study, a 2003 Ford E-350 and a 2004 GMC Savana 3500, are representative samples from the only two automobile manufacturers producing 15-passenger vans for the 2004 model year. e GMC Savana 3500 was factory-equipped with electronic stability control (ESC). Each van was evaluated with up to four load configurations depending on the test performed. he GMC Savana 3500 was tested with ESC enabled and disabled. Two maneuvers were used in this study: the Slowly Increasing Steer (SIS) and the NHTSA Road Edge Recovery (RER, also known as the NHTSA Fishhook). maneuver was used to measure maximum lateral acceleration and terminal yaw stability. e RER maneuver was used to quantify dynamic rollover resistance. Slowly Increasing Steer tests revealed that the terminal yaw stability of each vehicle was highly asymmetric, strongly depending on what combination of direction of steer and load was used. nerally speaking, Nominal Load tests produced higher lateral accelerations than those performed with 15-Occupant loading. In the case of the GMC Savana 3500, the yaw stability observed during Nominal Load SIS tests depended on whether ESC was enabled or disabled; stability was much improved when ESC was enabled. When evaluated with the 15-Occupant load, differences between ESC enabled and disabled SIS tests were much less apparent. Generally speaking, the static stability factors and dynamic rollover resistance of the vans degraded as the number of occupants increased. The only exception was that the maneuver entrance speed capable of producing two-wheel lift with 10-Occupant loading was lower than that required by the 15-Occupant configuration for the Ford E-350. None of the load configurations used in this study induced two-wheel lift during RER tests performed with the GMC Savana 3500 when its ESC was enabled. However, when ESC was disabled the Savana 3500's dynamic rollover resistance progressively worsened as the number of occupants increased. Results from this study indicate that installation of ESC on 15-passenger vans may have important safety benefits in some, but not necessarily all, on-road driving situations. Although ESC prevented wheel lift of the GMC Savana 3500 during Road Edge Recovery testing, it could not prevent the vehicle from spinning out during a Slowly Increasing Steer test performed with a 15-Occupant load.