This is an experimental security vehicle from 1973, created as part of a huge international research program involving many manufacturers who also produced such prototypes. A rebuild S-Class with a V8 engine in which the occupants survive a 65 km/h impact with a rigid barrier thanks to an airbag and seat belt tensioners.

The rubber-padded front and rear are particularly noteworthy from the outside, a kind of pedestrian protection that was implemented early on. It only found its way into the legal regulations and thus into the Euro-NCAP between 2005 and 2010 and was also implemented differently than here. You can clearly see the cover-up function of such prototypes.

After all, at that time the manufacturers had given up the opinion that one could not advertise with (passive) safety because accidents would awaken unpleasant memories and disrupt the happy-go-lucky world of advertising. Though the situation was worrying, because in 1970 there were more than 19,000 road fatalities in the Federal Republic of Germany. This value later turned out to be the highest value. It seemed that the rethinking of the manufacturers had helped.

Now that number has dropped to about 3,500 despite the tripling of the number of vehicles, but it's been a long road to get there. If you look at the development of a single vehicle over a period of time, it is striking how often e.g. only the door locks have been changed, mainly to prevent them from opening accidentally in a crash.

Even before the introduction of seat belts, it had to be ensured that no one could fly out of the car. Some people argued against the seat belts because they would restrict passenger movement in the event of an accident. In contrast to three-point belts, lap belts would allow a lateral dive. The dangerous kink of the body in the area of these seat belts (switchblade effect) was completely overlooked.

At least something had happened before the introduction, apart from the door locks. This included the obligation to have an inside and outside rear-view mirror in Germany only from 1956. Still later, a regulation was made that prevented passengers from flying out with their seats. Headrests took almost 50 years from their invention until they became mandatory around 1970.

The car was getting fuller and the clear view to the outside was gone. The hardest part was the introduction of seat belts in 1974 in the front and in 1978 in the back. This was felt to be a very unusual restriction on freedom of movement. In the USA, when the airbag was introduced in 1980, one still believed in a low seat belt usage rate and took a full-size airbag with a capacity of 65 liters, in Europe often only with 35 liters.

Back to the body itself. The VW Beetle, of all things, worried the surgeons because passengers suffered serious injuries if their heads touched an extremely stable cross panel above the windshield. The locks on the doors also had to be redesigned because they were supposed to give the rescue services relatively free access after serious accidents.

Overall, the strength of the body, as well as protection against penetration, has improved significantly. The speeds in the crash test have been significantly increased and it is now driven against obstacles that only partially cover the front. At the same time, today's cars are safer in the event of side impacts. The flexibility for pedestrian protection was not achieved with rubber, but with conventional body parts but with sufficient space for the technology arranged underneath.

With some ESF prototypes (not the one pictured above, of course) once aimed for an empty weight of 900 kg. That has increased considerably, even if one driver now has to be included. The coachbuilders say they have roughly maintained the weight by significantly changing the choice of materials and point to the comfort and equipment of today's vehicles.