AA New Zealand - the New Zealand Automobile Association
Menu
With our fully qualified instructors you'll quickly learn the rules of the road and improve your chances of passing your driving test!
Need extra confidence when buying a car?
An AA Appraised used car has received a 43 point mechanical check to give you a better idea of the vehicle's mechanical state
When buying a second hand car safety should be at the top of your list of considerations. Your car should provide you and other road users with protection in the event of a crash. The Used Car Safety Ratings assist buyers in making decisions to purchase cars that offer the best protection in a crash.
The 2012 Used Car safety ratings released in August are based on passenger vehicles manufactured from 1996 to 2010. 2012 marks the 20th year anniversary since these ratings were first produced.
Used Car Safety Ratings results show that, on average, newer models provide their drivers with better protection from injury in a crash.
Used Car Safety Ratings provide car buyers with critical information when selecting a used car. When considering your car purchase, vehicle safety should be paramount.
When looking for your next car, look for a vehicle with at least a good or excellent (4 or 5 stars) for driver protection and a Safe Pick vehicle, which considers the safety or other road users.
The Used Car Safety Ratings study is based on more than four million real-life vehicle crashes in Australia and New Zealand since 1996. The study shows how well each vehicle will protect the driver from death or serious injury in the event of a crash.
The 2012 ratings released in August are based on measuring the relative safety performance of 197 used cars based on over four million actual crashes on New Zealand and Australian roads from 1996 to 2010. The crash data has been analysed and vehicle safety ratings calculated by Monash University's Accident Research Centre.
29 vehicles made the 2012 Safe Pick standard, Affordable used vehicles can sometimes be the safest. Check out the full list of ratings for 197 models of cars.
Used Car Safety Ratings results show that, on average, newer models provide their drivers with better protection from injury in a crash. These improvements come from better structural designs, an increase in the fitting of safety features such as front, side, curtain and knee airbags, more advanced seat belt systems and vehicle interiors built with more energy-absorbing materials.
A consistent trend is that there is significant variation within vehicle categories, even between vehicle models of the same age. Some vehicle models, including recent ones, provide good protection for their drivers but present a high risk of injury to other road users in a crash. The Used Car Safety Ratings assist buyers to select vehicle models that provide the best protection for all road users.
It’s the right price, looks good, and it’s the perfect size for what you need. But there is one critical factor you may not have thought about – does your vehicle offer you good protection from injury in the event of a crash.
The Used Car Safety Ratings charts provide you with the crash safety rating for the driver. They show you how well each vehicle protects its driver from death or serious injury in a crash.
It is also important that your vehicle offers good protection to other road users including pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, or the drivers of other vehicles.
For example, the crash statistics analysed by Monash University indicate that many large SUVs are more likely to cause serious injuries to other road users in a crash than most other vehicles.
Vehicles which provide excellent protection from injury for their own drivers as well as for other road users in the crash receive a “Safe Pick” rating. If you are serious about reducing road trauma, you need to consider how your vehicle protects you and other road users.
'Safe Pick' vehicles introduced in 2011 identify vehicles that provide the best protection for both their own occupants and other road users in a crash. These vehicles are rated as being the safest choices when purchasing a second hand car.
Records from over 5 million vehicles in police-reported road crashes in Australia and New Zealand between 1996 and 2010 were analysed by Monash University’s Accident Research Centre. The ratings were calculated using an internationally reviewed method and are influenced by the vehicle’s mass, the structural design of the body, and the safety features fitted to the vehicle, such as airbags and types of seat belts.
Each of the driver protection ratings in the 2012 update has been recalculated based on the most recent crash data available so they are not comparable with the ratings published in previous years. Models of vehicles that cause lower injuries to other road users with which they collide, including other drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, as well as providing excellent protection for their own driver, are awarded the “Safe Pick” label.
The score for each individual model can be compared against the ratings for all other vehicles.
The driver protection ratings are about the risk of death or serious injury to the driver of the vehicle in the event of a crash. The ratings are not about the risk of being involved in the crash in the first place, which is generally determined by a range of factors including driver behaviour, vehicle condition and the road environment.
New car safety ratings (eg ANCAP) are determined by crash testing vehicles in a controlled laboratory setting while the used car safety ratings are calculated using data from millions of police reports on actual crashes involving a range of drivers and all types of driving conditions.
Occupants of heavier vehicles in real-world multi-vehicle crashes typically fare better than those in lighter vehicles. This is why ANCAP crash test results should not be compared among vehicles with large weight differences. In many single-vehicle crashes, greater weight offers no safety advantage. ANCAP crash test ratings relate to both occupant protection and the ability of the car to avoid a crash. ANCAP has a separate rating for a vehicle’s ability to protect a pedestrian in a crash.
The used car safety ratings listed in this brochure can be compared across all categories as they are derived from reports of actual on-road crashes and represent the ability of the car to protect its driver.
The ‘Safe Pick’ vehicles further identify vehicles that provide the best protection for both their own occupants and other road users in a crash.
Any vehicle safety rating system can only provide an indication of the relative levels of protection between vehicles you can expect in the event of a crash. Whether or not you die or are seriously injured in a crash also depends on how safely you drive your vehicle.
Safety features that may reduce the risk of death or significant injury include:
© Copyright NZAA Inc 2013
