Much of the research emphasis in vehicular trauma has been placed on life-threatening injuries, primarily to the brain and thorax, and possible means of preventing them using seatbelts and/or airbags. Less emphasis has been placed on non-fatal injuries, in part because this information was more difficult to obtain. Lower extremity injuries are a common and costly cause of permanent disability and impairment resulting from motor vehicle crashes. In this article, we report the results of our recent study of the mechanism of these injuries, specifically the role of direction of impact and seatbelt use.