NHTSA, IRL Team Up on Race Car Safety Research

Testing Capabilities and Comprehensive Comparison Data Make Delphi Site Ideal for Test

VANDALIA, Ohio, Dec. 2 -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Delphi Corp. , a leader in advanced safety systems for the automotive market, have teamed up with the Indy Racing League (IRL) on research and testing that could ultimately improve racecar safety.

Using the THOR advanced crash test dummy developed by NHTSA, joint research was conducted recently at Delphi's safety systems testing facility in Vandalia, Ohio, in cooperation with the Medical Director's Office of the IRL. The THOR dummy offered significantly improved human biofidelity and measurement capabilities in the head, neck and thorax regions. These attributes were key to the successful conduct of the study. Based on the testing performance of THOR, the dummy could be used more extensively for future research.

The intent of the research was to reconstruct specific racing accident events to better understand the causes of motor sports injuries. With a clear picture of what happens to the driver and car during an accident, the IRL can seek solutions for new safety innovations to help reduce the severity of driver injuries in the event of a crash.

"With a long history in safety innovation for the automotive field, Delphi also has been a proponent of safety in the sport of racing. With one of the most highly advanced testing facilities in the U.S. and our involvement in providing several safety systems to racing, it was only natural to extend the service to NHTSA," said William B. Hanna, engineering director for safety systems, Delphi Electronics & Safety. "We were able to meet the stringent requirements for testing the performance of the new crash dummy against current dummies, a key component to helping with NHTSA's program."

Building on its leadership in safety systems development, in 1999 Delphi became the first to install a hydraulic sled in North America. The sled has a thrust equivalent to that of two 747 jets at take off. It also features on- board data acquisition and on- and off-board digital video sampled at 1,000 and 45,000 frames per second respectively. The sled can simulate the forces of an actual crash using data from Delphi's earpiece sensor system worn by IRL drivers and Delphi's Accident Data Recorder 2, which are mandatory equipment for all IRL teams.

Delphi began providing complete sled testing to the racing industry in 2000. Since then, the company has amassed a large database of crash and safety information that is now used to help improve racecar and racing safety systems design and performance.

The Indy Racing League sponsors the open-wheel IndyCar Series, which includes the Indianapolis 500.

For more information about Delphi and its subsidiaries, visit www.delphi.com/media . For more information about NHTSA, visit www.nhtsa.dot.gov . For more information about the Indy Racing League, visit www.indyracing.com .