ANCAP ratings are a partial crock

[turbodewd]

http://www.ancap.com.au/crashtesting

Today lots of cars are 5-star rated, you cant get a higher rating. Common sense to me says that its not fair to say a Corolla is as safe as a Falcon or Territory.

ANCAP's Frontal Offset Test uses 2 vehicles of similar size - thats garbage. These days we are seeing LOTS more SUVs and pickups, that collisions should be tested against a large vehicle for all Frontal Offset Tests.

I suggest that the Falcon will hold up better and not roll than, say, a Nissan Tiida.

Am I alone in thinking ANCAP is half-baked? And apparently you get ½ a star for having seatbelt chime warnings.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKSPx...feature=fvwrel

IN this video we a Smart car hold up very well vs a large sedan Merc. Nevertheless the Smart is hurled far away, perhaps into other traffic. Who would think its safer to be in the Smart over the Merc?!?!?!!?

[Yellow_Festiva]

The ratings need to be reviewed. 5 stars is the norm and easy to get these days. I would like to see todays 5 stars be tomorrow's 2-3 stars out of five.

[jpd80]

It's a standardized test and goes more to how the data is interpreted, lots of other countries
have crash tests against either fixed or moving objects but no one would consider say an F150 vs a Fiesta..

[TC200six]

It's not ANCAP that's the crock, it's offset crash testing in general I think you're tying to say is crock. JCAP, EuroNCAP, IIHS all do the same. ANCAP are just following the rest of the world.

[mash again]

While i agree that an f150 vs a fiesta is "probably" a given ANCAP like any other standardised test is just information to be used with the rest of your intelligence in making a dec sion on what you would like to buy. Having said that 1/2 a point for a seatbelt chime.........gimme a break, at least make it realistic. Interesting that brakes dont seem to get a mention....or do they?

[xisled]

If you have a seat belt chime in the car you get an extra star.

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by xisled

If you have a seat belt chime in the car you get an extra star.

That's the sort of rubbish that should not go towards a rating. Especially when some cars can have the warning chimes easily disabled.

I think the new XF Jag only got 4 stars because of something similar.

[bobthebilda]

Originally Posted by xisled

If you have a seat belt chime in the car you get an extra star.

It doesnt say you get an extra star for a seat belt chime - it says extra points.

Additionally, ANCAP award bonus points for other safety features such as seat belt reminders. The overall score is then translated into a star rating of between 1 to 5, with higher scores awarded more stars.

I'm not sure how its all worked out, but I am assumming something like certain tests would score say 0-100. After the tests, a total score may come to 400, then they would also add extra points for other safety features. ie seat belt reminder may add 5 points etc etc. From elsewhere on the site-

Points are also awarded if the vehicle is fitted with safety features such as Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and seat belt reminders.

Once a total score is reached, it then translates into a star scale ie 250-300 points = 1 star, 300 -350 points = 2 stars etc etc.

[GTP-RPD]

ANCAP et.al are misleading, safety design is where it needs to be. And while they are at it throw Euro emmisions standards in the bin as well. Why have European standards we don't export our cars there and we are not living in Europe. And yes my Falcon does give me a better sense of safety than the Jap cars at work.

[jpd80]

A five star car does not mean you are impervious to injury, people still need to
understand that driving into a solid object at anything more than 60 kph could be fatal.

Originally Posted by TC200six

It's not ANCAP that's the crock, it's offset crash testing in general I think you're tying to say is crock. JCAP, EuroNCAP, IIHS all do the same. ANCAP are just following the rest of the world.

That test and the pole side impact test approximate the majority of vehicle crashes gleaned from decades of data.
They are worthwhile in assisting manufacturers and consumers to understand the degree of injuries
sustained in a relative low speed impact, especially when comparing vehicles.

Anyone wanting to overtake into an oncoming semi to test their 5-star rating has rocks in their head.

[MAD]

Heavy car keeps moving forward, light car moves backward.
Heavy car did not dissapate all it's energy to the occupants, the small car dissapated all it's energy, and some extra from the big car to the occupants.

[turbodewd]

Another safety thing i observe sometimes is dumb drivers who sit way too close to the steering wheel. Not wise!!!

[lockieoc]

Originally Posted by turbodewd

Another safety thing i observe sometimes is dumb drivers who sit way too close to the steering wheel. Not wise!!!

Or idiot passengers who think its a good idea to put there feet on the dash with an airbag fitted!

[mik]

i too believe the 5 star rating only means some safety in certain circumstances(a medium to low speed crash), i also think it gives people a false sense of security, lets face it an air bag only stops a head from hitting item x for a split second, when the car and you gets crushed/stoved in from a light pole or tree a 100th of a second later,............ more than likely your still gonna be pushing up daisys, but at least the star system brings cars up to a certain standard.