May 30, 2009

Size does matter?... Smaller Cars Top Safety Marks

From NY Times: Smaller Cars Earn Top Marks in Safety Tests
A study of car safety released on Wednesday shows that four of the top-scoring automobiles in tests of five new models were small cars or so-called super-minis — including the Honda Jazz, Hyundai i20, Kia Soul and Peugeot 3008.
 
The study, conducted by Euro N.C.A.P., a group that campaigns for automobile safety, was backed by European governments and motoring and consumer organizations. The results, the study's authors said, show that in "these economically challenging times, consumers who wish to downsize their cars can still place safety at the top of their wish list."
 
Seats installed in the Kia Soul, for example, "achieved a good result in the program's whiplash testing, again revealing that it is not only larger or expensive cars that achieve impressive results in safety."