ANCAP's five-point trifecta

Local crash safety authority, ANCAP, has announced that three small cars new to the Australian market have achieved five-star safety ratings.

Nissan's electric vehicle, the LEAF, was already considered a five-star car, after the Australasian New Car Assessment Program's European counterpart (Euro NCAP) concluded testing of the EV back in May. The Nissan is scheduled for release here next year and the ANCAP rating places it at an advantage over the only other EV currently on the market, the four-star Mitsubishi i-MiEV.

“Electric vehicles are a genuine option for today’s new car buyers - it is good news for consumers to see the Nissan Leaf record this top safety rating,” said ANCAP Chair, Lauchlan McIntosh.

Ford's Focus (pictured) was also tested by Euro NCAP recently. Like its second-generation predecessor, the new Focus also rated a five-star score from the safety testing body.

“Ford has also continued the five-star performance with all variants of the soon to be launched Ford Focus awarded an ANCAP 5 star rating. The rating of the Focus complements a strong line-up of five-star Ford vehicles in most vehicle categories,” said McIntosh.

Hyundai's Elantra, an American design, was tested locally by ANCAP and also deemed to be worthy of a five-star rating.

“Hyundai has made a clear decision to make safety a priority in the production and marketing of their vehicles, and the Elantra joins a range of other five-star models in their fleet,” McIntosh said.

With the Victorian government mandating stability control for new cars — and the federal government set to follow — one prerequisite for ANCAP five-star safety is effectively met by default. The dynamic safety aid and additional crash safety systems integrated in modern small cars contribute to their respective safety like never before and ANCAP's acknowledged expertise is influencing purchasing decisions strongly in favour of safer alternatives.

“Consumers are now regarding five stars as an entry point for their vehicle choice, so these manufacturers should be congratulated for bringing these five-star cars onto the Australian market,” McIntosh concluded.

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