August 2007
Best ways to prevent whiplash
NOT MEASURING UP As CR’s evaluations show, many rear seats have integrated head restraints that aren’t high enough to provide proper protection for
average and tall people, and no restraint in the center position.
Buy a car with a good rear-crash rating. Check with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (www.iihs.org) for its front-seat ratings and with Consumer Reports’ monthly auto-test reports for our rear-seat head restraint evaluations.
Adjust the head restraint. The top of it should reach at least as high as the top of your ears and as close as possible to the back of your head. If the restraint can be tilted forward, move it so that it’s no farther than 3 inches from your head; the closer, the better.
Always wear your safety belt. The belt helps you stay in position during a crash.
Sit upright. The head restraint can’t help if you are leaning to one side when a crash occurs.
Don’t tailgate. If the car in front of you stops suddenly, you won’t have to jam on your brakes, surprising the driver behind you. Leave plenty of room.
Position yourself for a crash. If you see a crash coming--or hear the squeal of tires behind you--and have time to react, lean back so that your head is touching the head restraint and look straight ahead. This will minimize any whiplash effect.
Adjust the head restraint. The top of it should reach at least as high as the top of your ears and as close as possible to the back of your head. If the restraint can be tilted forward, move it so that it’s no farther than 3 inches from your head; the closer, the better.
Always wear your safety belt. The belt helps you stay in position during a crash.
Sit upright. The head restraint can’t help if you are leaning to one side when a crash occurs.
Don’t tailgate. If the car in front of you stops suddenly, you won’t have to jam on your brakes, surprising the driver behind you. Leave plenty of room.
Position yourself for a crash. If you see a crash coming--or hear the squeal of tires behind you--and have time to react, lean back so that your head is touching the head restraint and look straight ahead. This will minimize any whiplash effect.
