Qoros 3 Sedan named safest car of 2013
The Qoros 3 Sedan was the safest vehicle tested by Euro NCAP in 2013.
The four-door saloon achieved not just the best score in the Small Family segment during Euro NCAP crash tests in September, but also the highest rating across all vehicle categories last year; not bad considering it’s the Chinese carmaker’s first ever model.
Elsewhere in Euro NCAP’s best-in-class announcements, Renault’s all-electric Zoe (and Al Suttie’s car of the year) was named safest Supermini while Lexus’ IS 300h came out tops in Large Family car group.
The Jeep Cherokee scored highest overall in the Small Off Road 4x4 segment. Ford’s Tourneo Connect was the highest rated Small MPV with five seats with the Kia Carens was the safest seven seater.
Finally, Maserati’s Ghibli was named safest in the Executive class.
Revised ratings
Euro NCAP introduced a tougher rating criteria at the start of 2013 but the fact that many cars still manage to achieve all five stars impressed Euro NCAP Secretary General Michiel van Ratingen.
He commented: “Euro NCAP is continuously evolving in response to industry innovation and consumer expectation. It is very positive that the number of four and five stars is still significant despite of the ever increasing requirements.”
For 2014, Euro NCAP ratings will reflect the effectiveness of cars’ forward collision warning and/or automatic braking technology.
Mr van Ratingen added: “The decision to reward collision avoidance technologies on new cars will encourage more widespread fitment and further improve the safety of all road users in Europe.
“We hope that this, together with very high levels of occupant protection, will allow consumers to choose the very safest vehicles in 2014 and after.”
Qoros’ 3 Sedan has just gone on sale in China and isn’t expected to arrive in the UK until the end of 2014.
It performed well in all four areas of Euro NCAP’s safety assessment to score 88% overall, achieving the highest adult occupant score of the year (95%).