When an SUV rolls over, the most unfortunate event of a rollover accident occurs when the roof or roll bar fails and the occupant's survival space is taken away. Thus, when the SUV roof hits the ground, intrusion or collapse of the roof can occur. To prevent this, stronger roof and roll bar components are necessary. Unfortunately, stronger Federal regulation of these requirements have been fought by the manufacturers. Again a story of profits over people.
Thus, even though it is very important that protection exist, typically SUVs have very weak roofs and inadequate seat belt systems. The properly designed seat belts are needed to tightly hold the occupant up against the seat (so that their head can be kept away from the roof as the car rolls). Many seat belts do not work well enough to prevent serious head or spine injury.
One particular roof defect that has been found to be weak and inadequate in a number of SUVs is the windshield headers. The windshield header is that part of the vehicle which connects the windshield to the roof. When the SUV has a weak windshield header, the roof may collapse during a rollover when the header gives way.
The windshield header problem exists for the SUV, Pickup truck and passenger cars. Accidents for all three of these involve many of the same hazards. In fact, in some cases, pickup trucks have a higher center of gravity, which can be made worse by the load being carried by the truck.
As with an SUV, turning or swerving maneuvers in a truck can result in a rollover accident. Like an SUV, a truck accidents that involves a rollover is also more likely to cause occupant ejection, with significantly lower survival rates.
Like with an SUV, truck accidents often involve roof crush. Since the cab of a truck protrudes above the hood and the top of the bed, it is likely to be the weight bearing portion of the truck upon a rollover. As a result, truck accidents likewise often involve roof crush.
