2007 IIHS Subcompact Crash Test Results

[Variance]

2007 IIHS Subcompact Crash Test Results

Subcompact cars, an increasingly popular choice among drivers, fared poorly in new crash tests conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Not surprisingly, the small cars did especially poorly in crashes with large SUVs and trucks, according to results released today. But deaths in small cars also were higher in single-vehicle crashes, compared to larger vehicles.

The only small vehicle to get good safety marks across the board was the subcompact Nissan Versa, which is slightly larger than competing mini or B-car vehicles, but is marketed alongside the others.

Five of the seven cars tested by the insurance institute got at least one poor rating, including the Honda Fit (rear crash), Chevy Aveo (rear), Scion xB (side), Toyota Yaris (side) and Hyundai Accent/Kia Rio (side and rear). Only the Versa and Yaris with optional side air bags avoided a poor rating.

BMW's Mini Cooper wasn't tested this year; the redesigned model will be tested next year. The 2006 model had no poor ratings.

The Detroit News

[CSpec]

Why does the Aveo have such poor crash test results compared to everyone else?

[ToniCipriani]

Details of the Aveo test:

http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=742

The frame didn't seem to hold up really well. And it looks like it had the same problem with the Cavalier: head on frame after impact.

[Sixty8panther]

[iNSERT_COMMENT]

>>>> "I'd rather drive a 1950s/1960s BOF land yacht" <<<<

[ / ]

[siegen]

"The seat/head restraint combinations in every car except the Versa that we tested this time around wouldn't provide adequate protection against whiplash,"

I wish they would call it "Whiplash" test, instead of "Rear" crash test, which can be misleading.

[Intrepidation]

I wish they would call it "Whiplash" test, instead of "Rear" crash test, which can be misleading.

229970[/snapback]

Agreed.

Man the Aveo sucks hardcore in a crash.

[Cory Wolfe]

You just figured that out? The Aveo is a death trap. :wink:

[the_yellow_dart]

ow my face

[pow]

2007 IIHS Subcompact Crash Test Results

Subcompact cars, an increasingly popular choice among drivers, fared poorly in new crash tests conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Not surprisingly, the small cars did especially poorly in crashes with large SUVs and trucks, according to results released today. But deaths in small cars also were higher in single-vehicle crashes, compared to larger vehicles.

The only small vehicle to get good safety marks across the board was the subcompact Nissan Versa, which is slightly larger than competing mini or B-car vehicles, but is marketed alongside the others.

Five of the seven cars tested by the insurance institute got at least one poor rating, including the Honda Fit (rear crash), Chevy Aveo (rear), Scion xB (side), Toyota Yaris (side) and Hyundai Accent/Kia Rio (side and rear). Only the Versa and Yaris with optional side air bags avoided a poor rating.

BMW's Mini Cooper wasn't tested this year; the redesigned model will be tested next year. The 2006 model had no poor ratings.

The Detroit News

229800[/snapback]

Rear "crash" has NOTHING TO DO WITH SIZE. In fact, I'm surprised at how well a few subcompacts performed in the side test. The Yaris, Versa, and Fit beat out a lot of larger cars.

[pow]

[iNSERT_COMMENT]

>>>> "I'd rather drive a 1950s/1960s BOF land yacht" <<<<

[ / ]

229888[/snapback]

It would have gotten Poor (no shoulder belt), Poor (no side head protection), and Poor (no headrests).

[frogger]

What a pile the Aveo is, so is the other Korean

Edited December 23, 2006 by frogger

[Ravenfreak13]

It would have gotten Poor (no shoulder belt), Poor (no side head protection), and Poor (no headrests).

Yeah...but...since they are so big...you won't even feel the impact...i swear....my electras hood and trunk are 8' long. Plus, back in the day, dashes were made of soft material....however the steering wheel could give someone a pretty big bruise.

[Satty]

however the steering wheel could give someone a pretty big bruise.

I wouldn't call being impaled getting a bruise.

[Ravenfreak13]

I wouldn't call being impaled getting a bruise.

Yeah....i think im gonna need a steering wheel cover...a big scwushy one...with lots of padding...i wish they had thought of that back then

[RBB]

I wouldn't call being impaled getting a bruise.

"It's just a fleshwound."

-RBB

[balthazar]

Let's head-on a '65 Newport into a honda fit and take pictures.

[Sixty8panther]

Let's head-on a '65 Newport into a honda fit and take pictures.

Pictures of what? the dent on the Newport's grille/bumper or the Honda Fit that

crushes like a empty Budweiser can & bounces 70 feet away into a telephone

pole cable and gets ripped in half? :wink:

How safe can a car like this be? How much "crumple zone" can you

engineer into a hood/nose that spans 14"???

Edited December 27, 2006 by Sixty8panther

[RangerVT]

How safe can a car like this be? How much "crumple zone" can you

engineer into a hood/nose that spans 14"???

Point well taken. However, I am surprised that the Aveo scored so poorly, since it did much better in last year's tests before the redesign. Gotta wonder what GM was thinking with this year's model.

[thegriffon]

"But he pointed to the Versa ranking as a sign that small can still be safe." Perhaps it has something to do with the Versa being a compact, not a subcompact. For such an old vehicle (despite the major facelift) it's surprising how well the Aveo performs. The only shock here is how poorly vehicles such as the Yaris and Accent performed, since they recieved much better scores in European and Australian tests. There appears to be something about the Aveo's behaviour in these type of tests that GM did not expect. So much so that they seemed sceptical at first, but it keeps getting similar results. Comparisons to the old model are invalid, since the tests have been updated, but you can bet GM will be poring over the results trying to figure out why their own tests and models didn't produce the same results.

[evok]

"But he pointed to the Versa ranking as a sign that small can still be safe." Perhaps it has something to do with the Versa being a compact, not a subcompact. For such an old vehicle (despite the major facelift) it's surprising how well the Aveo performs. The only shock here is how poorly vehicles such as the Yaris and Accent performed, since they recieved much better scores in European and Australian tests. There appears to be something about the Aveo's behaviour in these type of tests that GM did not expect. So much so that they seemed sceptical at first, but it keeps getting similar results. Comparisons to the old model are invalid, since the tests have been updated, but you can bet GM will be poring over the results trying to figure out why their own tests and models didn't produce the same results.

The Euro/US side NCAP barrier is different than the IIHS and is conducted at a lower speed IIRC. The IIHS barrier is taller driving head protection. For those vehicles test w/o head protection in the IIHS test, there is almost no way for them to get much above a marginal. By comparison, US Side NCAP does not measure head injuries, and the Euro NCAP may not either. But in reality those smaller barriers all but bounce off the vehicle and a thorax bag may be sufficient.

[siegen]

Let's head-on a '65 Newport into a honda fit and take pictures.

There was a news article recently around my area showing a picture of a freeway collision between a late 90's Lincoln Town Car and a '92-95 Honda Civic. The Civic was destroyed and the occupants died (not sure if there were passengers), while the people in the Lincoln only suffered minor injuries.

Other than law enforcement, is there any reason why a car needs to be big enough and heavy enough so that is can obliterate a smaller car driven by someone who either can't afford a larger car or cares about their MPG and emissions? If that Civic had been in a collision with another Civic, there's a good chance both occupants would have survived.

How safe can a car like this be? How much "crumple zone" can you engineer into a hood/nose that spans 14"???

Not enough as long as people continue to buy full-size Suburbans that they don't need.

[Flybrian]

Other than law enforcement, is there any reason why a car needs to be big enough and heavy enough so that is can obliterate a smaller car driven by someone who either can't afford a larger car or cares about their MPG and emissions? If that Civic had been in a collision with another Civic, there's a good chance both occupants would have survived.

Please don't make this a social issue.

[siegen]

Please don't make this a social issue.

[regfootball]

Please don't make this a social issue.

as in, what if that civic crashed into a cement truck?

Hehe, i witnessed the aftermath of a cement mixer that steamrolled a small car before. Pretty ugly. I am sure a semi truck or school bus can be easily survived by that Fit driver.