← Continued from Page 4 of "Automotive Industry Gotchas. Buying a Good New Car Without Getting Screwed"How safe is my car?
I suppose very few people ask themselves this question, judging by the heaps of sales for cars in which passengers become sitting ducks even in case of “minor” crashes at 30-40mph.
I know, we all have flawless driving skills and crashes are never going to happen to us, but what will you do if another driver is careless or If the car itself malfunctions? You may be tempted to think an SUV is best in this kind of situations. Wrong! Size is not the most important in this case.
Naturally, a crash between a decent SUV and a super mini will cause terrible damage to the latter, but replace the super mini with a mere tree or another large car and the plot will thicken pretty quickly.
This is where the car performance and safety testing institutes come into play - the famous Euro NCAP for Europe, IIHS for North America, ANCAP for Australia, and others for the rest of the world.
Keep in mind that choosing as safe as possible a car is paramount, regardless of your budget. Your life is far more important than a handful of dollars, so don’t even think about cutting back on safety features and try to always get the “ultimate quality”.
For my part, I find that Euro NCAP is the most demanding safety assessment and, as such, I earnestly recommend you use it for getting informed, regardless of the country or continent you live in. In addition to the star ratings, you’ll get the chance to see how bad (or good) the tested car looks after the crash.
Furthermore, there are video clips, photos and, most importantly, color pictograms showing damage sustained by the testing dummies. Focus on finding cars in which the pictograms for the driver and adult occupant stay green after being “devastated” by the tests.
Be aware that star ratings don’t tell the whole story. Some cars have similar or identical overall ratings, but the pictograms are colored very differently. As a rule of thumb though, the closer to green the pictograms are, the lower the chances for car occupants to get seriously hurt. I would never buy a car that exhibits more yellow than green (not even mentioning red), but this is something everyone has to decide for themselves.
But... not all cars get tested. Should we not buy them at all? Well, not necessarily. Remember that, more often than not, a car is built on an already existing platform, one share with other vehicles. For example, considering that a VW Touareg looks very good in Euro NCAP tests, an older Cayenne model, which is based on the same platform, will certainly perform just as well in case of a crash. The bottom line is buyers should pay attention to the platforms used by car, not just the brand or model name. This kind of information is available on safety assessment institute sites as well as automotive related webpages.
Last but not least, don’t miss any of the optional safety features. Any additional airbag, any safety or stability assist can save your life. All-wheel drive is the better choice for long and frequent trips. Sure, it does not come for free, but remember that what we’re discussing now is how to pick great cars, not just lookers.
Seriously now, don’t go out on the streets without putting on your seatbelt. Regardless of how safe is your car, if you’re the kind of people who feel the seatbelts are just a nuisance, you’re better off skipping this article completely and get a motorcycle instead. Cars are probably not enough for you in terms of adrenaline and you’re likely to see them only as a waste of time and money. No safety system will be able to help you anyway, if you don’t wear the seatbelt.
I know, we all have flawless driving skills and crashes are never going to happen to us, but what will you do if another driver is careless or If the car itself malfunctions? You may be tempted to think an SUV is best in this kind of situations. Wrong! Size is not the most important in this case.
Naturally, a crash between a decent SUV and a super mini will cause terrible damage to the latter, but replace the super mini with a mere tree or another large car and the plot will thicken pretty quickly.
This is where the car performance and safety testing institutes come into play - the famous Euro NCAP for Europe, IIHS for North America, ANCAP for Australia, and others for the rest of the world.
Keep in mind that choosing as safe as possible a car is paramount, regardless of your budget. Your life is far more important than a handful of dollars, so don’t even think about cutting back on safety features and try to always get the “ultimate quality”.
For my part, I find that Euro NCAP is the most demanding safety assessment and, as such, I earnestly recommend you use it for getting informed, regardless of the country or continent you live in. In addition to the star ratings, you’ll get the chance to see how bad (or good) the tested car looks after the crash.
Furthermore, there are video clips, photos and, most importantly, color pictograms showing damage sustained by the testing dummies. Focus on finding cars in which the pictograms for the driver and adult occupant stay green after being “devastated” by the tests.
Be aware that star ratings don’t tell the whole story. Some cars have similar or identical overall ratings, but the pictograms are colored very differently. As a rule of thumb though, the closer to green the pictograms are, the lower the chances for car occupants to get seriously hurt. I would never buy a car that exhibits more yellow than green (not even mentioning red), but this is something everyone has to decide for themselves.
But... not all cars get tested. Should we not buy them at all? Well, not necessarily. Remember that, more often than not, a car is built on an already existing platform, one share with other vehicles. For example, considering that a VW Touareg looks very good in Euro NCAP tests, an older Cayenne model, which is based on the same platform, will certainly perform just as well in case of a crash. The bottom line is buyers should pay attention to the platforms used by car, not just the brand or model name. This kind of information is available on safety assessment institute sites as well as automotive related webpages.
Last but not least, don’t miss any of the optional safety features. Any additional airbag, any safety or stability assist can save your life. All-wheel drive is the better choice for long and frequent trips. Sure, it does not come for free, but remember that what we’re discussing now is how to pick great cars, not just lookers.
Seriously now, don’t go out on the streets without putting on your seatbelt. Regardless of how safe is your car, if you’re the kind of people who feel the seatbelts are just a nuisance, you’re better off skipping this article completely and get a motorcycle instead. Cars are probably not enough for you in terms of adrenaline and you’re likely to see them only as a waste of time and money. No safety system will be able to help you anyway, if you don’t wear the seatbelt.
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