Raising the bar on safety: More stars mean safer cars

For over three decades, consumers have relied on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's 5-Star Safety Ratings System to help them choose the safest vehicle.  And since this system was put in place, cars have continued getting safer in order to measure up--a fact reflected in America's declining highway fatalities and injuries.

But even with these successes, our pursuit of safety is never finished.  Today, NHTSA Administrator David Strickland and I unveiled a new 5-Star Safety Ratings System that will use more rigorous tests, better crash data, and higher standards to make safety ratings tougher and more meaningful for consumers.

We're raising the bar on safety.  And our message is simple: more stars mean safer cars. 

 
Secretary LaHood and NHTSA Administrator Strickland unveil the new 5-Star Safety Ratings System in Washington, DC.

The 5-Star Safety Ratings System evaluates the safety of cars using a scale of 1 to 5 stars, with 1 star being the lowest and 5 stars the highest.  The new system will measure vehicle safety in three broad areas: frontal crash, side crash, and rollover resistance.  The results of these tests will be combined and compared to the results from other vehicles.  This will generate an Overall Vehicle Score--a simple, clear safety rating consumers can use when purchasing a car.

In the new system, NHTSA is also:

• Conducting tests using different sized dummies so we can learn about the effects of crashes on both men and women.
• Including side pole crash testing for the first time.
• Collecting injury data on additional areas of the body, including the head, chest, neck, and legs.
• Highlighting cars with new crash avoidance features like Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Lane Departure Warning (LDW), and Forward Collision Warning (FCW).

These new standards will be applied to all vehicles produced in 2011 and beyond.  For model year 2011, 24 passenger cars, 20 sport utility cars, 2 vans, and nine pickups will be rated under the new system.  A full list, with ratings, can be found on SaferCar.gov.

 
New test dummies will study the effects of crashes on both men and women.

With the rollout of this new system, we hope that automakers will begin pushing the frontier of safety even further.  In the short-term, because the new standards are much more rigorous, not all previous 5-star rated vehicles will remain at 5 stars.  But, we're confident that manufacturers will step up to the challenge and provide American consumers with even better, safer car choices.

Safety is, and will always be, the top priority of the Department of Transportation.  We'll keep holding America's automobiles to the highest standards--and we'll keep giving consumers the tools they need to choose the safest vehicles to drive.

 

Comments

[Steve Robbins]

I look forward to safer vehicles and a much better overall travels.

I love the way they included the crash dummies - the dummies definitely done a good job in making our lives better

[Michael E. Bailey]

Raising the safety standards for cars, SUVs, and pickups is something that has been needed for some time. Safer vehicles will translate into fewer deaths and serious injuries and lower insurance and health care costs. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Trevor Parker]

I love the Department of Transportation's continuous pursuit of making our automotive vehicles more safe. I believe automakers will push the frontier of safety to meet the new standards stated by the new 5 Star Safety Rating System. The additions in the new system should provide detailed data that can be used in the future to help save more lives. By using different sized testing dummies and collecting injury data on different areas of the body, they will be able to better understand how to protect drivers and passengers of all sizes. Kudos to the NHTSA!

[Cars on CarLocate]

Raising the standards of vehicle safety is definitely a win-win for everyone! The new dummies are a great idea and I'm sure they will provide interesting information on how crashes effect different people. I also love the new overall ratings system. That will be a great new tool for comparing cars!