The worst cars in the Euro NCAP crash tests

The ranking of the best and worst Euro NCAP cars helps identify which models protect their occupants or other people involved in an accident most effectively.

The safety of occupants and pedestrians is a priority for both manufacturers and buyers. That is why carmakers usually celebrate their good safety test results loudly, but what happens when their cars fail the crash tests? Here are the worst Euro NCAP cars.

As you know, the Euro NCAP crash tests assess a car’s overall safety in terms of protection for its occupants as well as pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists… Since 1997, when the shortcomings of the vehicles on sale were exposed, the Euro NCAP tests evaluate different areas of car safety, studying how a vehicle’s active and passive systems respond. Each of these points receives a rating, plus an overall score known as the

Euro NCAP stars

.
The worst cars according to Euro NCAP
As we said, after several decades and with more demanding protection legislation, manufacturers cannot avoid having their new cars subjected to these tests if they want to sell them.

The most recent tests have produced mixed results. While both the new Audi Q3 and the new BMW X5 earned 5 Euro NCAP stars, the blow came for one of Jeep’s flagship products: the Jeep Wrangler.

The Jeep Wrangler Sahara tested is a benchmark among its peers, but it shows serious shortcomings in protecting the chest and limbs of front-seat occupants and poses serious risks to pedestrians in the event of being struck, due to the design of its bonnet.

That is why the Jeep Wrangler is one of the worst Euro NCAP cars based on its score: just one star.

But if we are talking about the most worrying models, or simply the worst Euro NCAP cars of recent times, the Fiat Panda stands out. This city car, which has survived decades, does not seem to adapt well to the current safety requirements for cars.

So while the low level of protection for adult occupants and pedestrians is already worrying, the poor rating for child occupants earned it the dubious title of number one among the worst Euro NCAP cars of 2018.

https://youtu.be/wYfiIU1mlig

According to the Euro NCAP tests, in frontal or side impacts the head of the youngest children, aged 6 to 10, is the most affected area, which means a high risk of

serious injuries in an accident

.
The worst cars according to Euro NCAP before 2018
According to the Euro NCAP archive, if we look at the ratings prior to this year, 2018, two of the three worst Euro NCAP cars of 2017 were also Fiat.

Another of the cars with zero Euro NCAP stars is the Fiat Punto. The veteran city car is not going through its best moments either, perhaps also because of its low safety score.

According to its tests, the Fiat Punto is really ineffective at preventing neck injuries in rear impacts involving whiplash. Its poor protection in pedestrian impacts is also worrying, the area from the bonnet to the roof, including the A-pillars, being especially dangerous.

Another Fiat that cannot proudly display a good rating is the Fiat 500. This charming city car receives three stars, partly due to the poor protection of the chest and head of rear-seat occupants and of the driver himself, who exposes his head to risk when the full frontal width is assessed.

It has as many stars as its sibling, the Fiat Doblo, but other brands cannot boast of achieving the 5 Euro NCAP stars either. For example, the DS 3 lives up to its name by receiving three stars, as many as the Alfa Romeo Giulietta.

But if we want exotic or sports cars, or both, we cannot leave out the Ford Mustang

. The reimagined icon achieves only two stars, placing it second on the list of the worst Euro NCAP cars analysed in 2017.

20 years of Euro NCAP tests
But if we keep looking through the list of the best and worst Euro NCAP cars, in 2015 the §h64§Lancia Ypsilon§h65§, the only survivor of a brand on its way to disappearing, could not offer its potential customers much in terms of safety either: two Euro NCAP stars.

Further back, in 2012 we find another worrying data point about Jeep, since the Jeep Compass produced at that time earned only two stars, where in an accident the pedestrian was the most harmed. Two stars, the same as the Renault Traffic passenger transport vehicle, also from 2012.

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