Fiat 500 Gets Three Star Crash Test Rating, Lowest Of All New Cars
The slow-selling Fiat 500 hit another snag after NHTSA gave the compact car a three-star crash test rating, a dismal score in an era where five-star ratings are practically ubiquitous.
While the 500 got four stars in the frontal crash and rollover tests, the side impact result was a poor two stars. Only the now-dead Dodge Caliber and the Ford Escape (set to be replaced after a decade in production) have achieved similar ratings. The 500’s fellow subcompact competitors like the Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit and Chevrolet Sonic have yet to be crash tested.
The Fiat has been plagued by slow sales, with Chrysler reporting a 173-day supply for the vehicles, and three consecutive months of declining sales figures.
[Source: Automotive News]
More by Derek Kreindler
Comments
Join the conversation
What a crap article. The author is clearly ignorant of the fact that NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) raised the bar for the 2011 model year to better discriminate vehicles. (The rule actually went into effect 08/29/2011, which means in actual practice it only applies to 2012+ vehicles, with the FIAT 500 being one of the first vehicles tested under the new more stringent requirements.) This means it's much harder to get a 5 star rating in any category, let alone overall. And it also means that the NCAP ratings for the FIAT 500 absolutely must not, under any circumstances, be compared to a 2010 Ford Escape. It's shameful that this is what passes for automotive journalism these days. The article is totally irresponsible. Seems like the author is grasping at straws in a failed attempt to explain why FIAT is not meeting Sergio Marchionne's laughable sales projections. Per safercar.gov, "Starting with 2011 models, NHTSA has introduced tougher tests and rigorous new 5-Star Safety Ratings that provide more information about vehicle safety and crash avoidance technologies. Because of the more stringent tests, ratings for 2011 and newer vehicles should not be compared to ratings for 1990-2010 models. Overall vehicle score and frontal crash ratings should ONLY be compared to other vehicles of similar size and weight." Also, see http://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2011/07/29/2011-19049/new-car-assessment-program-ncap-safety-labeling
SAAR IWANT TO PURCHASE, BUY A NEW FIAT 500 MODEL CAR FOR THE RATE,PRICE,COST OF TWO LAKHSRUPEES WITH A/C POWER STEARING, MUSIC SYSTEM ETC PLEASE CALL TO-8861435482, URGENT, IMMEDIATELY FROM DEVAN, BENGALURU CITY