Starting in the '90s?  No, starting in 1979, when frontal impact crash testing began.  What happened in the 1990s was a stiffening of the standards.  The Vanagon has a front crumple zone - not very deep, compared to more modern vehicles, but enough to meet US and German frontal impact standards for passenger cars right up until 1991.....

James
Ottawa, ON

> Date: Fri, 6 Jun 2014 10:00:38 -0700
> From: stuartmacm@GMAIL.COM
> Subject: Re: OT Fri. more on my Poor Man's Syncro (Astro/Safari) a sort of              review..long
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> 
> Starting in the '90s NHSTA required front end energy absorbing crumple zones in all US vehicles, which is why you won't see a rear engined vehicle sold here again.  The body is designed so the engine is forced down and under in a frontal impact and its mass absorbs some of the force of the crash, protecting the cockpit.  Combine that with a bunch of airbags and you've got a much safer vehicle.  We Vanagon owners like to live on the edge though!
> 
> These are nice, practical vans, but are trucks like you said, and they couldn't compete with the more refined family minivans from other manufacturers.  GM could have refined them (and not just by adding leather seats) but opted not to .  But then, GM has made a lot of mistakes . . .
> 
> Stuart
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> 
>   ..... I noticed the front end is more like a normal car...it sticks out there
> further than a Vanagon's.