Roof Strength Test Confirms That the Smallest Car is Safe
Business Wire, August 20, 2009
smart fortwo earns IIHS strongest roof rating among all cars in
its class, also outranking other larger cars in same test
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — The 2009 smart
fortwo today was designated strongest roof among competing micro
and mini cars by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS),
confirming once again that the smallest car on the road is safe. The
IIHS tested roof strength, and the smart fortwo was the only vehicle to
achieve the highest rating of Good in its class. The smart fortwo also
tested higher than all but one of the 13 small SUVs previously tested by
IIHS. Roof strength is the most important vehicle attribute for
protecting occupants in a rollover crash according to IIHS.
If youre considering a small car, the smart fortwo is the answer when
it comes to safety, said Dave Schembri, President of smart USA. As our
society increasingly turns to small cars, smart proves that small can be
safe. He added, This is the ninth standardized crash test performed by
either the federal government or the IIHS that confirms the smart fortwo
is safe.
According to the IIHS, the smart fortwo withstood a force of 5.4 times
its weight during the tests, and far exceeded the minimum required force
ratio of 4 times the vehicles weight to earn a Good rating. The IIHS
reports that a vehicle in the Good category, like the smart fortwo,
has 50 percent less risk of serious or fatal injury in a single-vehicle
rollover crash. As IIHS makes clear, when it comes to roof strength for
rollover protection, lightweight vehicles can fare better because their
roofs dont have to work as hard to keep the structure around the
occupants intact
The governments Cash
for Clunkers incentive program and sustained high gas prices has
led more and more consumers to smaller, more fuel efficient cars, but
some continue to question the safety of small vehicles. The numerous
smart fortwo safety tests have proven these concerns to be without
merit. The smart fortwo has met or exceeded all standardized
tests performed by the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) and the IIHS, and achieved the highest rating
among standard IIHS bumper tests of microcars.
In addition, the smart fortwo already exceeds the new federal roof
strength requirements that will not start phasing in until 2012, with
all vehicles needing to comply by 2016. Engineers designed the smart to
be a trendsetter in safety of small cars, with a high level of standard
technologies that eclipse federal mandates. The smart fortwos tridion
safety cell, which surrounds and protects vehicle occupants, is a
reinforced steel cage that acts like a race car roll cage, and is the
primary reason the smart fortwo performed so well in the IIHS roof
strength test. The 2009 smart fortwo also comes equipped with electronic
stability program (esp) as standard. According to the IIHS, vehicles
with esp are 20% less likely to be in a fatal accident with another
vehicle and 51% less likely to be in a fatal single-vehicle accident.
Visit www.safeandsmart.com
to learn more about the smart fortwos safety features and real-life
owner accident stories.
The smart fortwo offers the right balance of power, outstanding fuel
efficiency, innovative safety features, environmental friendliness and
excellent value. Models start at $11,990* and the smart fortwo is rated
as the most fuel efficient, non-hybrid vehicle by www.fueleconomy.gov,
on sale in the United States. smart USA has available many attractive
financing offers in conjunction with the Cash for Clunkers program and
the smart fortwo qualifies for the maximum government credit of $4,500.
ABOUT the smart fortwo and smart USA
smart USA Distributor LLC, headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan,
is the exclusive distributor of the smart fortwo in the United States
and Puerto Rico and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Penske Automotive
Group, Inc. The smart fortwo is a brand of and is manufactured by
Daimler AG. This technologically advanced vehicle achieves 41 mpg on the
highway and is an ultra-low emissions vehicle, as certified by the State
of California Air Resources Board
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