NCAP consideration when car-buying

[ph9]

I've been thinking about buying a small, cheap car to complement my Defender. I'd seen a Citroen Saxo advertised, and was planning to go and see it, but I've since come across mention of extremely poor crash performance, and some of the online images and videos don't make for comfortable viewing!

I quite like the idea of a light, basic car, and I know the Defender is probably worse than a Saxo in some crash scenarios. However, for whatever reason I'm getting cold feet about the Saxo in particular, and small cars in general (eg Mk1 C1/Aygo/107).

By the way. I'd be using the car on the full range of roads, and in all weathers, and I'd probably drive around 20,000 miles per year in it.

I don't intend to drive wrecklessly, but I suppose one never knows what might happen. I'm just trying to weigh up the pros and cons of cars like the Saxo, and wondering if it's sensible to pass on cars which have poor NCAP ratings.

[MrGTI6]

In terms of cars from the last few years, the rating is swayed by driver aids as much as anything else, and a car without automatic emergency braking and whatnot is unlikely to score highly.

The Saxo, however, is from a time when crash test results were based purely on how the car performed in a crash. And whilst the Saxo in my opinion is a great little car, you really don't want to crash one!

[RSTurboPaul]

Look up the crash videos for the Metro and see how it compares

Anything small and french will be bendy, but it will also be fun, and like the original Mini, it's easier to avoid a crash in a car with good handling and low weight.


Easiest answer is 'don't crash'.

This can be assisted by getting some proper advanced driver training, which can then be applied to whichever vehicle you happen to be driving - Reg Local, IAM, RoSPA, HPC... all would be worth looking at if you haven't already.

[ph9]

Yes, I remember driving an old Volvo 240 and thinking that although it was considered 'safe' at the time, its general dynamics were such that it might be more likely to be involved in an accident rather than avoid it!

I've done some advanced driver training, and have ridden motorbikes etc, but even the best drivers can be involved in accidents.

I know good drivers who've hit red deer, and I suspect a Metro or Saxo might not fare too well against a stag!

[nikaiyo2]

You dont want to be doing 20k miles a year in an Aygo/C1.

They are fine for a couple of miles "nip into town" but not for more than that.

[raspy]

RSTurboPaul said:

Easiest answer is 'don't crash'.

This can be assisted by getting some proper advanced driver training, which can then be applied to whichever vehicle you happen to be driving - Reg Local, IAM, RoSPA, HPC... all would be worth looking at if you haven't already.

It's not that simple. Even if the OP does lots of advanced driver training and does their best to not crash the car themselves, there is still the risk of other road users crashing into them! Whether it's a truck driver busy texting on their phone or someone driving a SUV who happens to be rather intoxicated.

I would say to the OP it's all based upon your attitude to risk in life. Safety of small cars in recent years has improved considerably. Might be worth looking in more detail at the Adult Occupation Protection and Child Occupation ratings within the NCAP scores, if that's your primary concern.

I might be wrong, but I thought NCAP scores were within class, i.e you can compare the rating of an Aygo to a Saxo, but you can't compare the rating of an Aygo to a 3 series for example. A 5 star rating for a small car wouldn't necessarily mean it's safer than a larger car that only has a 4 star rating.

[300bhp/ton]

ph9 said:

I've been thinking about buying a small, cheap car to complement my Defender. I'd seen a Citroen Saxo advertised, and was planning to go and see it, but I've since come across mention of extremely poor crash performance, and some of the online images and videos don't make for comfortable viewing!

I quite like the idea of a light, basic car, and I know the Defender is probably worse than a Saxo in some crash scenarios. However, for whatever reason I'm getting cold feet about the Saxo in particular, and small cars in general (eg Mk1 C1/Aygo/107).

By the way. I'd be using the car on the full range of roads, and in all weathers, and I'd probably drive around 20,000 miles per year in it.

I don't intend to drive wrecklessly, but I suppose one never knows what might happen. I'm just trying to weigh up the pros and cons of cars like the Saxo, and wondering if it's sensible to pass on cars which have poor NCAP ratings.

20,000 miles a year in a Saxo would probably not be all that nice IMO.

As for crash ratings......


Well. How risk adverse are you?


However it is worth noting, that crash ratings, at least NCAP can be misleading to some extent. They test against objects of the same weight. Therefore a small car with a great crash rating might not actually fare very well in a crash with a big heavy vehicle.

Ultimately this makes it hard to really assess the safety of a vehicle just based on its NCAP rating.


At the end of the day, only you can make a call on how you feel about the perceived safety of the vehicle you are in. But I do think that generally people over worry about such things. And while any crash is a bad thing. It is actually more the rarity than the norm.

And if you are going to worry about the cars safety rating. You might also want to start and look at how safe the actual roads you are driving on are. As well as the times of day you are driving.

[Rick101]

raspy said:

It's not that simple. Even if the OP does lots of advanced driver training and does their best to not crash the car themselves, there is still the risk of other road users crashing into them! Whether it's a truck driver busy texting on their phone or someone driving a SUV who happens to be rather intoxicated.

Good AD training would factor this in. It's certainly something I consider.
You can't control everything around you, but you can consider all eventualities.

Look at race drivers, F1, WEC whatever. There are some drivers that are 'incident prone' and some that are 'lucky'.
It's not luck, it's planning.

Get whatever car you want and enjoy it!

[NGRhodes]

raspy said:

I might be wrong, but I thought NCAP scores were within class, i.e you can compare the rating of an Aygo to a Saxo, but you can't compare the rating of an Aygo to a 3 series for example. A 5 star rating for a small car wouldn't necessarily mean it's safer than a larger car that only has a 4 star rating.

All car tests are the same for a similar age of test and star ratings are comparable no matter size/class as they are scored against the damage/harm to an occupant or road user (aka the crash test dummy), not damage to vehicle (also a part of the score for safety assist features). As the test are regularly updated, older test results should not be compared against current/recent tests.

Pickups and light commercials tests are different and HGV test are different again, so the star ratings have different meaning compared to cars.

[iphonedyou]

You mentioned it in OP, but honestly, the Defender - mate hit a tree in his at no speed and ended up in hospital. Tin can!

[300bhp/ton]

iphonedyou said:

You mentioned it in OP, but honestly, the Defender - mate hit a tree in his at no speed and ended up in hospital. Tin can!

Yet...

[ZX10R NIN]

ph9 said:

I've been thinking about buying a small, cheap car to complement my Defender. I'd seen a Citroen Saxo advertised, and was planning to go and see it, but I've since come across mention of extremely poor crash performance, and some of the online images and videos don't make for comfortable viewing!

I quite like the idea of a light, basic car, and I know the Defender is probably worse than a Saxo in some crash scenarios. However, for whatever reason I'm getting cold feet about the Saxo in particular, and small cars in general (eg Mk1 C1/Aygo/107).

By the way. I'd be using the car on the full range of roads, and in all weathers, and I'd probably drive around 20,000 miles per year in it.

I don't intend to drive wrecklessly, but I suppose one never knows what might happen. I'm just trying to weigh up the pros and cons of cars like the Saxo, and wondering if it's sensible to pass on cars which have poor NCAP ratings.

If you're going to be doing 20k a year then go & buy the nicest rep car you can find for your budget (comfort/torquey diesel/low NVH) will all add upto you not noticing those 20k compared to something like a 107 where you remember everyone of those miles.

[ph9]

ZX10R NIN said:

If you're going to be doing 20k a year then go & buy the nicest rep car you can find for your budget (comfort/torquey diesel/low NVH) will all add upto you not noticing those 20k compared to something like a 107 where you remember everyone of those miles.

Thanks. I'm still trying to weigh up the options, and keep switching between small, economical cars, and paying more for something a bit more barge-like. I've gone for years being perfectly happy with my Defender, and have hardly looked at cars in that time. There aren't too many cars which appeal, and those which do tend to be be old ones which aren't readily available in good condition and sensible prices. I'll just continue to scour Gumtree, and hopefully something decent will pop up!

[ZX10R NIN]

You don't need to spend loads:to get a good mile muncher plus in the real world something like a 107 with it's short gearing mean that in reality the rep car will actually be better economy wise

CLK270 Avantgarde bulltproof drivetrain mid 40's stock but with a map & replacement filter you'll see low 50's on a run, they're a great mix of go (cruise heated seats etc low NVH all make this better than a 107) & comfort.

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