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Porsche Premieres with 5 Star Macan, Dacia Logan Falls Behind


Porsche macan (select to view enlarged photo)
2015 Porsche Macan

BRUSSELS -- December 3, 2014: With safety ratings ranging from three to five stars, the cars assessed by Euro NCAP in its latest round of tests are targeted at widely different consumer groups and cover a broad range of vehicle categories. Amongst them the first ever Porsche tested by Euro NCAP.

Porsche, well-known for its high performance cars, makes a debut in the popular segment of compact SUVs with the new Macan. The Macan scored well and achieved the five star rating despite missing out on standard fit AEB, a feature which is becoming commonplace in many luxury models these days. Other SUVs tested, such as the Land Rover Discovery Sport that comes with AEB as standard equipment and the Lexus NX and the Kia Sorento - both having the system as an option - show that crash protection and crash avoidance go hand in hand these days. All three attained the top rating of five stars under the 2014 test regime.

Three winners presented themselves in the Large Family class as well: the new VW Passat and Subaru Outback offered all-round crash protection and achieved the maximum five star rating. So did the long-overdue new Ford Mondeo, which also offers a pedestrian-detecting Autonomous Emergency Braking System as an option.

In the Supermini category, the smart fortwo, smart forfour, MINI Cooper and Opel/VauxhallCorsa have all been awared a four star rating. Opel/Vauxhall received a Euro NCAP advanced reward for its Side Blind Spot Alert, an advanced driver assistance technology which helps driver avoid highway accidents.The SBSA system warns the driver if a vehicle enters a blind spot and is available on various models including the Corsa.

Finally, the Dacia Logan scored three stars, a result that reflects the brand’s aspirations when it comes to safety and driver assistance systems in particular.