Top safety picks: U.S. cars don’t make the cut
American cars didn’t land a single spot in
the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s second annual Top Safety Pick
survey, which lists the vehicles that best protect passengers in
crashes.
American cars didn’t land a single spot in the
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s second annual Top Safety Pick survey, which lists the vehicles
that best protect passengers in
crashes.
The biggest winner among the 13 selections for the 2007 survey, released late Monday, was Japan. Honda Motor Co. and Fuji Heavy Industries Co. produce six of the vehicles. Germany’s Volkswagen AG, through its Audi subsidiary, and DaimlerChrysler AG, manufacture three of the selected models.
South Korea and Sweden each produced two winning models.
One Swedish car that made the list, the Volvo XC90, is a brand owned by Ford Motor Co. The other, the Saab 9-3, is a brand owned by General Motors Corp.
Ford and GM domestic brands missed the list because the IIHS now requires that vehicles picked in the survey have electronic stability control, which the industry group said significantly reduces crash risk. Electronic stability control, a system that brakes or reduces engine power to help correct improper steering, could prevent nearly a third of all fatal crashes and reduce the risk of rolling over by as much as 80 percent, the IIHS said.
1. As someone who rallied cars back in the day, I’m pleased to see the IIHS accept that features aiding in crash avoidance are as critical as items designed to help you survive a crash.
2. There isn’t anything “magic” about the technology offered as standard or optional in any of these cars. US auto manufacturers are absolutely capable of giving us the option — or building in additional safety. They choose not to.
And consumers will continue to choose other brands.
The biggest winner among the 13 selections for the 2007 survey, released late Monday, was Japan. Honda Motor Co. and Fuji Heavy Industries Co. produce six of the vehicles. Germany’s Volkswagen AG, through its Audi subsidiary, and DaimlerChrysler AG, manufacture three of the selected models.
South Korea and Sweden each produced two winning models.
One Swedish car that made the list, the Volvo XC90, is a brand owned by Ford Motor Co. The other, the Saab 9-3, is a brand owned by General Motors Corp.
Ford and GM domestic brands missed the list because the IIHS now requires that vehicles picked in the survey have electronic stability control, which the industry group said significantly reduces crash risk. Electronic stability control, a system that brakes or reduces engine power to help correct improper steering, could prevent nearly a third of all fatal crashes and reduce the risk of rolling over by as much as 80 percent, the IIHS said.
1. As someone who rallied cars back in the day, I’m pleased to see the IIHS accept that features aiding in crash avoidance are as critical as items designed to help you survive a crash.
2. There isn’t anything “magic” about the technology offered as standard or optional in any of these cars. US auto manufacturers are absolutely capable of giving us the option — or building in additional safety. They choose not to.
And consumers will continue to choose other brands.
Posted: Tue - November 21, 2006 at 09:38 AM