Nine New Cars Achieve Top Euro NCAP Safety Rating

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Wed, 31 Aug 2011

The Audi A6, BMW X3, Chevrolet Aveo, Chevrolet Orlando, Citroen DS5, Hyundai i40, Vauxhall Ampera, Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet and Volkswagen Jetta have all been awarded five stars in the latest crash test safety results by Euro NCAP .

Only one car - the new Kia Picanto - failed to get the top safety rating, achieving a four-star result due to its surprising lack of Electronic Stability Control (ESC) as standard across the Picanto range in Europe.

"Consumers should expect this critical safety equipment to be part of any offering, regardless of car size or price," said Michiel van Ratingen, secretary general of the European New Car Assessment Programme.

There was, however, special praise for Chevrolet, with Euro NCAP saying it recognised the efforts the carmaker had made since the original Aveo was tested in 2006, when it scored just two stars.

Ratingen announced that the five-star Euro NCAP rating will be made even tougher "in the coming years" due to even more rigorous child occupant protection tests.

He said: "We consider child protection as a very important part of the overall star rating and have plans to step up our requirements."

Ratingen also revealed that the Audi A6, Citroen DS5 and Vauxhall Ampera wouldn't have received a five-star rating under the new scoring system that's due to come into effect next year, as all of the cars failed to score at least 60 per cent in the pedestrian protection test.