Press Release
NHTSA Announces Plans to Crash Test 43 Vehicles from Model Year 1997
11/19/96
NHTSA Will Crash Test 43 Model Year 1997 Vehicles for Frontal NCAP WASHINGTON, Nov. 13 -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced that it will frontally crash test 43 model year 1997 vehicles to provide consumers with information that they can use to help guide their new vehicle purchase decisions. The federal safety agency said it will crash test 21 passenger cars, 10 sport utility vehicles, four vans, and eight pickups in the frontal crash test portion of its New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). Each will be crashed head on into a fixed barrier at 35 mph. NHTSA also will provide consumers with the results from previous tests of models that have not been redesigned for 1997. Together, the tests will account for about 86 percent of the vehicles to be sold in 1997. The 35 mph crash test speed is 5 mph faster than the speed prescribed for compliance with several existing federal motor vehicle safety standards, including Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, "Occupant Crash Protection." The crash tests are conducted at the higher speed to demonstrate differences that are more apparent at 35 mph than at 30 mph. They indicate relative levels of occupant protection and safety performance among vehicles of the same type and similar weight. The test results are presented in "star" format -- one to five stars, with five stars being the best score -- to make the technical crash results easy for consumers to understand. Instrumented dummies are used in the tests. The head, chest and upper legs of the dummies are equipped with instruments that monitor impact forces. Each dummy is protected by the vehicle's occupant protection equipment, which may include a combination of manual or automatic safety belts and air bags. Consumers can request test results and additional information on the NCAP program and other safety topics by calling the agency's toll-free Auto Safety Hotline at 800-424-9393, or 202-366-0123 in the Washington area. Information is also available through the NHTSA home page on the Internet World Wide Web at www.nhtsa.dot.gov. In the near future, NHTSA will announce its plans to expand the 1997 vehicle crash test program to include side impact ratings. . 1997 New Car Assessment Program . Vehicle List for Frontal Crash Tests Make Model Body/Style Size/Class ------------------------------------------------------------ Chrysler Sebring Convertible Medium Dodge Dakota Extended Cab Pickup Light Truck Dodge Caravan Van Van Dodge Ram Pickup Extended Cab Pickup Light Truck Jeep Cherokee 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Jeep Wrangler 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Plymouth Neon 2-door Compact Ford Windstar 98 Van Van Ford F-150 Pickup Light Truck Ford Explorer 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Ford Expedition 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Ford Ranger Pickup Light Truck Ford Escort 4-door Compact Ford Club Wagon/Econoline Van Van Chevrolet C/K Pickup Light Truck Chevrolet C/K Extended Cab Pickup Light Truck Chevrolet Venture Van Van Chevrolet Tahoe 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Chevrolet Cavalier 2-door Compact Chevrolet Cavalier 4-door Compact Chevrolet Blazer 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Buick LeSabre 4-door Medium Chevrolet Malibu 4-door Compact Pontiac Grand AM 4-door Compact Pontiac Grand AM 2-door Compact Pontiac Grand Prix 4-door Medium Chevrolet S-10 Extended Cab Pickup Light Truck Cadillac DeVille 4-door Heavy Chevrolet Suburban 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Honda Accord 2-door Compact Hyundai Sonata 4-door Compact Kia Sportage 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Kia Sephia 4-door Light Mitsubishi Montero 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Mitsubishi Galant 4-door Compact Nissan Pathfinder 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Nissan 200SX 2-door Light Toyota Camry 4-door Medium Toyota Paseo 2-door Light Toyota RAV4 4-door Utility Sport Utility Vehicle Toyota Tacoma Extended Cab Pickup Light Truck Volkswagen Golf 4-door Compact Volvo 960 4-door Medium An electronic version of this document can be obtained via the World Wide Web at: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/index.html.