The tradie who once arrived in a Holden ute now turns up in something taller, wider, longer and a tonne heavier, carrying the same hammer and chisel. European pedestrian protection standards favour low, sloping fronts that carry a struck pedestrian onto the bonnet. Tall, blunt fronts hit them in the chest and push them under. US research found vehicles with bonnets higher than about a metre were 45 per cent more likely to kill a pedestrian than cars with low, sloping fronts.