Fiat Punto Makes History with First-Ever Zero-Star Crash-Test Rating

Megalith

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The 2017 Fiat Punto became the first car to ever get zero stars in the European New Car Assessment Programme’s crash testing, the safety organization said Wednesday. That’s not a great score, and the necks of these crash-test dummies will probably be hurting in the morning. Fiat advertises the vehicle online as having the “utmost passive safety” and “all thrills and no spills.”

The relaunched Punto supermini is the first vehicle to score zero stars since NCAP testing began 20 years ago. A re-release of the 2005 version, the Punto's starless rating was a result of low scores for its crash performance, combined with the absence of key technologies such as Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) and Lane Support Systems, giving it an unprecedented zero-per-cent Safety Assist result.
 
To be fair it got downgraded for stupid bullshit like lane keep assist, etc

It shows you how much stupid crap they force on cars these days.
I read it as saying that its not safe in impacts and they couldn't offset that in the scores with impact preventing tech. So the lane assist and what not might have bumped it up to a 1 star death trap instead of a 0 star death trap
 
Not really surprising that a basic car from 2005 would do pretty lackluster and not have any of the new safety "tech". Now if we could just get people to use their own inbuilt safety tech while driving, their fucking brain, we wouldn't need all this dumb garbage.
 
I read it as saying that its not safe in impacts and they couldn't offset that in the scores with impact preventing tech. So the lane assist and what not might have bumped it up to a 1 star death trap instead of a 0 star death trap

Ah, good point.

Although i'll also give them some pity because ultimately this is the type of vehicle that likely will hardly ever see a highway and will be driven in slower moving small road enviroments in Europe. It's not really a car designed for the highway.
 
Ah, good point.

Although i'll also give them some pity because ultimately this is the type of vehicle that likely will hardly ever see a highway and will be driven in slower moving small road enviroments in Europe. It's not really a car designed for the highway.
Can say the same thing about those pos Smart car but I see them on the high way all the time.
 
Not really surprising that a basic car from 2005 would do pretty lackluster and not have any of the new safety "tech". Now if we could just get people to use their own inbuilt safety tech while driving, their fucking brain, we wouldn't need all this dumb garbage.

Cause I can prevent other people from hitting me...
 
Not really surprising that a basic car from 2005 would do pretty lackluster and not have any of the new safety "tech". Now if we could just get people to use their own inbuilt safety tech while driving, their fucking brain, we wouldn't need all this dumb garbage.
If everybody drove like you're suppose to 100% of the time crashes would be pretty close to 0% and we wouldn't need much safety gear at all outside of great breaks and good visibility.
 
To be fair it got downgraded for stupid bullshit like lane keep assist, etc

It shows you how much stupid crap they force on cars these days.
This bears repeating. The car performs pretty well in the actual crashes. Ok, sure, it doesn't have side curtain airbags, so it's not as good as it *could* be. But the reason it got 0 stars was because (and ONLY because) of the lack of driver assists. It's also worth pointing out that this particular requirement is very new.* The whole "lane assist would have offset the bad scores from the side-impact test" argument doesn't hold water, because lane assist and emergency braking aren't going to keep you from getting t-boned.


* There's apparently a history of this particular agency tightening safety standards juuuussst as cheaper, foreign cars get the bells and whistles of the more expensive European brands.
 
To be fair it got downgraded for stupid bullshit like lane keep assist, etc

It shows you how much stupid crap they force on cars these days.

Lane assist abilities should be for driverless cars. If you need that then you shouldn't be driving. Actual crash performance is what counts as all the active systems in the world don't stop the red light runner or avoiding them. Or the texting fuckwit that rams up your arse at 60kmph. The passive systems matter for you.

I'm not defending the car or brand, just the way they're going on about safety from that pov.
 
Actual crash performance is what counts as all the active systems in the world don't stop the red light runner or avoiding them. Or the texting fuckwit that rams up your arse at 60kmph. The passive systems matter for you.
But the active systems can help prevent you from being "the texting fuckwit that rams up your arse". And an accident avoided is better than an accident survived.

Because let's be honest: the kind of person who would willingly buy a Fiat Punto is not the most diligent and attentive driver on the road.
 
So in other words, it's almost like driving a motorcycle (maybe even without a helmet)?

No way, that car is still vastly safer than older cars, or any crashed motorcycle. The compartment space was maintained, airbags deployed, seat belts. Everything else is chaotic.
 
Your likely going to die in a small car hitting a large object or solid concrete wall no matter the safety rating. People wont wear what is necessary to survive such devastating impacts such as a 5 point harness, head and neck restraint system and a helmet. Heck people think big old SUV's are safe, yet people die in them as well when hitting such objects.
 
Don't worry The Hellcat version of this Fiat will have better safety features.
 
This bears repeating. The car performs pretty well in the actual crashes. Ok, sure, it doesn't have side curtain airbags, so it's not as good as it *could* be. But the reason it got 0 stars was because (and ONLY because) of the lack of driver assists. It's also worth pointing out that this particular requirement is very new.* The whole "lane assist would have offset the bad scores from the side-impact test" argument doesn't hold water, because lane assist and emergency braking aren't going to keep you from getting t-boned.


* There's apparently a history of this particular agency tightening safety standards juuuussst as cheaper, foreign cars get the bells and whistles of the more expensive European brands.

So much this. If the agency wanted to be honest, they would split the ratings into actual protection, and avoidance ratings.
 
Clearly they designed it for performance.

"It don't got any of them safety mechanisms to slow 'er down."
 
Looking at the crash test video...

Front offset: It looks okay, the windshield cracked a bit, but the cabin looked intact and the door looks like it would have been openable.
Full frontal: If you fail this one, it can only mean you are a knockoff Chinese or Indian car. Again, the Punto looks okay.
Side impact: Total failure. In fact, if it were a taller truck hitting the side, it's very likely there's going to be a cracked skull. Looks very lethal.

but hey, Euro NCAP posts their results, so lets go take a look at it
https://www.euroncap.com/en/results/fiat/punto/29849

Drive the Punto...
  • If you like whiplash
  • If you don't like your femurs and shins, but you love your feet
  • If you want to give the passengers in the back broken ribs
  • If you absolutely hate children in the back seat
If so, then this is the car for you.



At the very least, it's friendly towards the legs of pedestrians you may hit, although they might not remember the ordeal if their head strikes the car.
 
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