If you must hit something what do you aim for?

Answer 1

If an accident is absolutely unavoidable and you must hit something (obviously you would want to avoid pedestrians first and foremost) you should avoid hitting any object that would cause a dead stop. Think about this in terms of a water balloon or an egg. If you were to climb a ladder and drop the egg straight down, the egg would splatter in all directions around the point of impact on the floor. However if you were to throw the egg across the room, it would only splatter in one direction from the point of impact. These characteristics are also similar to the physics of a moving vehicle upon impact. If a car were to crash into a wall or rail at an angle as opposed to straight on it would ricochet off the wall or rail. If the car hits straight on, there is a sudden loss of motion, which can cause serious injuries, death, or even ejection from the vehicle if you were travelling fast enough.