Poor Ratings for Smaller Cars

July 2005

Small cars are definitely cheaper but what’s more important, a car’s sticker price or your life? Recent tests conducted by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety gave poor side-impact crash test ratings to a majority of small cars. Side-impact crashes are the second most common type of deadly crash.

Small cars earning “poor” ratings include:

• Ford Focus
• Hyundai Elantra
• Kia Spectra
• Mazda Three
• Mitsubishi Lancer
• Nissan Sentra
• Saturn Ion
• Suzuki Forenza
• Suzuki Aerio
• Volkswagon New Beetle

The Chevy Cobalt and Toyota Corolla earned “acceptable” ratings when equipped with optional side airbags with head protection. Institute research shows that side airbags with head protection reduced deaths by 45 percent among accidents where the driver’s side was impacted. Without the side airbags, both cars also got a “poor” mark.

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