A white car of 1150 kg is driving east all along on a foggy road at 7.22m/s, without lights on. The blue car of mass 1430 kg is driving all along the similar road at 21.3m/s in the similar direction. The driver of the blue car doesn’t see the white car and rear ends it. The bumpers of the cars then stick altogether after the collision.
i) Determine how fast and in what direction are the cars moving following the collision?
ii) Determine how much kinetic energy is lost in the collision?
iii) Assume that the blue car was driving west rather than east when it strikes the white car. How fast and in what direction would the cars move after the collision?
iv) Determine how much kinetic energy would be lost in the second case?