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London - Thatcham Research announced the safest new cars of 2017 in the United Kingdom, and long list of finalists for the What Car? Safety Award.
This year’s tests have shown that there is more choice than ever in choosing a safe car. As manufacturers continue to raise the safety bar, the UK public are safer on UK roads than ever before.
Autonomous emergency braking
The list of ten cars taken from the 2016 Euro NCAP ratings, all meet the strict criteria for the award, which includes track-based testing of collision avoidance systems and achieving a top marks in crash tests - all part of the 5 star rating system.
Safety technology fitted to the vehicle must include; AEB (Autonomous Emergency Braking) fitted as standard and some form of Safety Assist technology beyond NCAP assessment such as lane keeping systems. The cars are then judged on market relevance and value for money.
READ: 2017 SA Car of the Year - Here are the 10 finalists
All 2017 long list finalists also feature Pedestrian, low speed City and high speed Inter-Urban AEB as standard. A major step forward in safety for mainstream vehicles and in manufacturer commitment to safety, as Euro NCAP testing for pedestrian AEB was only introduced in January 2016.
The 2017 long list includes:
Alfa Romeo Giulia
Audi Q2
Ford Edge
Hyundai Ioniq
Mercedes-Benz E-Class
Peugeot 3008
Renault Scenic
Seat Ateca
Toyota Prius
VW Tiguan
These are the 10 safest cars on sale in the ???? according to Thatcham Research. pic.twitter.com/sF56wmM5vp
— Wheels24 (@Wheels24) December 13, 2016
All vehicles included in the long list are remarkably similar in terms of specification and purchase price, with the Mercedes- Benz E-Class being the only more-expensive executive vehicle of the list.
The 2016 commended vehicle, the Honda Jazz, was highly praised as the first supermini to offer AEB as standard across all trim lines, at an accessible purchase price.
The long list also includes vehicles which feature innovations which go above and beyond the current Euro NCAP testing, and offer major safety benefits:
• Lane Departure Warning is fitted on most of the top ten as standard. However, most manufacturers also offer Lane Keep Assist systems to actively steer you back into lane.
• For the first time, Ford have fitted AEB as standard across all trims of a new model - the Ford Edge.
• The Peugeot 3008 features Intelligent Speed Adaption system on all trims, as standard. The Speed Limit Recognition and Recommendation system uses a windscreen mounted camera to detect and display the speed limit for the road on which the driver is travelling. In addition to making the driver aware of the speed limit, there is also the option to limit the vehicle to the posted speed limit, taking the stress out of long motorway roadworks.
• The Mercedes-Benz E-Class features a unique and highly innovative Junction Assistant system that can prevent side crashes at T-Junctions and intersections.
• The Toyota Prius offers Reverse AEB. With 25% of all crashes from parking, this is a system that can save your wallet as well as deaths to small children unseen behind the vehicle whilst maneuvering.
Thatcham Research Chief Executive, Peter Shaw, said; “These ten vehicles represent some of the safest cars on sale in the UK today, and we are delighted to see that by raising awareness of the important issues surrounding vehicle safety, manufacturers are starting to rise to our challenge of fitting safety as standard across all models, regardless of segment or price.”
