Our colleagues on the Cars blog are talking about several enhancements to the government's crash test program for the 2010 model year. Most notably, female crash dummies will be used and a new side pole test will simulate a vehicle striking a tree. Consumers Union has been a proponent for the female crash test dummy, among other safety improvements, because it enables the tests to better represent a broad range of body types, specifically women and larger children.

We applaud the new measures and the resulting improvements to car safety. To read about the upcoming changes in more detail, visit the Cars blog.