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The One Thing You Cannot Skimp on When Buying Your Next Vehicle

When you are shopping for a new vehicle, or a vehicle that is new to you, the process usually takes weeks of research and months to find the best fit for your needs. At least, that is how I think it should be, and I have met many people who felt the same way.
Person driving a vehicle 17 photos
Photo: Jeshoots.com on Pexels.com
Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Dacia Spring during 2021 EuroNCAP test (1 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test (0 star overall result)
Over time, I have helped several of my friends and acquaintances choose their next ride. Typically, they wanted something that had more features than their current vehicles, if they had a vehicle at the time.

For those who were looking for their first vehicle, which involved a used car each time – that remains my recommendation on the matter for someone who has just got their driver's license, the priority was something within their budget that will also be reliable. I had a few extra suggestions for each of them.

In other words, those who wanted to get their first car desired one that was affordable to run and that would not break down frequently. Preferably, it would not break down at all. Now, that is relatable, isn't it?

At this point, I should point out that there is something missing from the criteria, and it is the element that you should not skimp on. It is, in fact, the only thing that cannot be retrofitted after purchase, repaired along the way, buffed to perfection, or bought when you need it.

I am referring to safety. Somehow, the previous paragraph just made a lot more sense, didn't it? Accidents are called accidents for a reason, and it means that when they happen, it is too late to make the vehicle you are in safer than it was. That is the suggestion I was referring to just three paragraphs above.

All you could have done was stuck to the speed limit (or even gone slower if conditions were poor, mind you), as well as make sure you had your seatbelt buckled up, and so did your occupants.

In a real-life accident (I was fortunate enough to live to tell the tale of several such events), you do not get to buckle your seatbelt at the last minute (when the vehicle is skidding out of control) or adjust your seat to be in the right position in the event of an impact.

Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test \(0 star overall result\)
Photo: EuroNCAP
You do not have time for any of those things. As they say in the world of motorcycling, ATGATT, which stands for All The Gear, All The Time. Or, in other words, dress for the fall and not for the ride. Simple, right? It is an often-overlooked thing, and then you see people riding without helmets or while wearing T-shirts and even flip-flops.

When an impact happens, it happens, and there is nothing you can do to stop it. If you are fortunate to live through it and escape the accident without any life-changing injuries, I can guarantee that you will look for a safer vehicle the next time you search for one.

Since I was just a kid when my family's only car was involved in a rollover, I can say that I figured out the importance of vehicle safety at an early age. I am incredibly lucky that I have made it out of that crash unscathed and that my family members present in the vehicle were without life-changing injuries, even though they were hurt.

I thought about this topic yet again after EuroNCAP posted the results of its latest testing session. As you have seen by now, the Renault Zoe was reassessed seven years after its first evaluation. Even though it went through a thorough facelift, the EuroNCAP found that its safety has not improved, at least not according to today's standards.

Renault Zoe during 2021 EuroNCAP test \(0 star overall result\)
Photo: EuroNCAP
Sadly, EuroNCAP's grading system is complicated to understand if you do not go into details, and most people will not do that if you think about it. So, instead of raising a few red flags in each driver's mind about safety, discussions on the Internet have gone the other way, and now, the relevance of those tests is under scrutiny by the fierce judges of the Facebook comments section.

If there is something to remember from this, I would say it should be to buy the safest vehicle you can afford. Check the safety ratings when shopping for a new vehicle, and when you get a specific model to top your list of favorites, make sure you read what the EuroNCAP/NHTSA/IIHS had to say about its crashworthiness.

If you are luckier than me, you will never get to "experience" its passive safety. But if you do, you will thank yourself for wearing the seatbelt properly and buying a safe vehicle in the first place.
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Editor's note: For illustration purposes, the photo gallery shows the outcome of the crashtest of the Renault Zoe and the Dacia Spring.

About the author: Sebastian Toma
Sebastian Toma profile photo

Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland.
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