The question of the day - from the expert: Why did not the Ministry of Internal Affairs notice the passenger in Yefremov’s car?

Yuri Antipov, Independent Technical Expert

Two frontal pillows (driver and passenger) could have worked without a passenger in the front seat. But...

In one of the high-tech telecasts of the central TV, it was said that there were accident witnesses who saw that someone from Yefremov’s car quickly retreated after a collision of cars. So, whom to believe - the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which at one time "brilliantly" worked and protected the inviolability and innocence of the "passenger" of Mercedes in a resonant accident on Leninsky Prospekt or to the witnesses of the current accident on Smolenskaya Square?

Well, as always, we analyze only technical facts. After all, “iron” never lies, unlike some people.

The collision of Yefremov’s car occurred on the left (driver's) side of the body. The right side of the front of the machine is virtually unaffected. Even the right headlight remained intact. See photo No. 1.

And now we focus on the windshield of Yefremov’s car. From the side where the driver’s seat is located, and where the blow from the oncoming car was, the windshield is whole. Not a single noticeable crack. See photo No. 2.

But on the passenger side, all the glass is cracked. And not just in cracks, but in circular cracks that could have formed only due to point pressure on the glass, and not because of the deformation of the car body. See photo No. 3.

So where did the strong pressure on the windshield from the right side of the body come from? Outside? Ruled out. The hood lock did not open, and the hood, remaining in place, could not hit the glass. Maybe from the oncoming car? And also not. The right side mirror remained intact on Yefremov’s car, so the oncoming car couldn’t hit the windshield with its body. So, only cracks from the inside could form such cracks on the windshield opposite the passenger seat. And this means that the passenger was in the car.

Why cracks only from the side of the passenger, not the driver? After all, the main blow fell on the driver's side. Everything is simple. The driver-side airbag is further from the windshield. It is embedded in the steering wheel of a car. And on the passenger side, there is a pillow in the front panel. Therefore, the head of Yefremov on impact did not reach the windshield. But the passenger banged into it...

Do you think that I only conclude relying on the only fact that there was a passenger in the car? Of course not. Therefore, we go further.

The airbag is a disposable product. If for some reason it worked (fired), then it must be replaced with a new one. No one ever erases and darn it. Therefore, the fabric of the pillow is always CLEAN. And white. And what about the pillow that shot from the passenger’s side in Yefremov’s car? However, see for yourself. See photo No. 4.

On the snow-white fabric of the passenger cushion spots and smudges are visible. And these are not folds of fabric, based on the direction of the angle of sunlight. And such traces remain only when the passenger rushes forward during the impact and, receiving minor injuries, manages to stain the airbag. As a rule, the blood of his broken face. I asked at the beginning of whom to believe, the Ministry of Internal Affairs or witnesses? I think the answer is obvious.

By the way. In the first three photos, the passenger airbag is not visible, as it sank under the torpedo.