From www.autocar.co.nz: The AMI Safety Award recognises the safest car released during the past year. This is based on how the vehicles fared in local crash testing, reviewing the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme (ANCAP) results. And this year the winner was the Mercedes-Benz A-Class.
They were many cars scoring excellent safety marks in 2018 but for cumulative score, taking into account child protection (91 per cent), safety assist features (73 per cent) and vulnerable road user protection (92 per cent), it was the Mercedes A-Class that produced the best overall performance. With a total of 352 points it edged out the Corolla and T-Roc by reasonable margins.
As James Goodwin, the Chief Executive of ANCAP commented, the A-Class “achieved the highest ever Vulnerable Road User Protection rating, and equalled the highest Child Occupant Protection rating”.
"It really doesn’t matter whether you buy the base or the top model, for all cars get the same level of safety specification."
AMI’s Eve Whitwell says the AMI Safety Award is a good indicator for consumers when it comes to purchasing a new vehicle.
“Mercedes Benz should be acknowledged for its work in helping protect those most vulnerable on the road, with the A-Class achieving the highest ever pedestrian protection rating, and equalling the highest Child Occupant Protection rating too."“Before Kiwis buy their next vehicle, we really encourage everyone to check rightcar.govt.nz to check the safety rating,” she says.
The list of safety features on the A-Class is long, including the fact that there are nine airbags. It has an active bonnet, AEB, ESP, a driver attention monitor, blind spot monitoring, crash responsive emergency lighting and first-aid kit, active lane keeping and traffic sign recognition. There’s also a Pre-Safe accident anticipation system in which the car senses a crash is imminent and prepares the occupants for the worst (pretensions safety belts, closes windows and panoramic roof), reducing the risk of potential injury.
One of the most important safety aspects of the new A-Class and one that’s easily overlooked, is the AI-driven Siri-like assistant, summoned with the ‘Hey Mercedes’ command. “She” can assist the driver with tasks that might otherwise be distracting, like changing radio station or temperature setting, inputting a sat nav destination, and even suggesting alternative routes if traffic is heavy. It’s essentially the icing on the safety cake for the new A-Class.
For the full run down of the AMI NZ Autocar Car of the Year, check out the latest issue of the magazine, which is on sale February 28
