The Mercedes A-Class, Hyundai Nexo and Lexus ES topped their classes in this year’s ratings but at the same time, some of the the worst results of the year were also announced.

While most cars tested in the past year have achieved a five-star rating for safety a handful didn’t perform so well, with one model achieving the lowest score ever awarded by the testing body.

Zero rating The Fiat Panda was only the second car in the history of Euro NCAP to receive a zero-star rating. The Panda is a facelifted version of a model which has been in production since 2011 and is only the second car to receive a zero rating.

The other was the Fiat Punto in 2017. It failed to achieve more than 50 per cent in any of the car safety organisation’s four key testing categories. The safety of children seated in the rear was of specific concern to experts, with the Panda’s child occupant protection score of 16 per cent falling significantly short of the 79 per cent average. Off-roaders off the pace

The Jeep Wrangler performed almost as badly, scoring a lowly one star. The Jeep Wrangler is the third worst car tested by Euro NCAP. It achieved only 50 per cent for adult occupant protection due to concerns about its deformable structure and fears the dashboard construction posed a risk to passengers. It was also criticised for a lack of collision avoidance technology and poor pedestrian and cyclist protect.

The Suzuki Jimny performed better – attaining three stars – but was still the third-lowest rated vehicle of the year. The small 4×4 scored 75 per cent for adult occupant protection compared with an average of more than 90 per cent. Its child occupant rating of 84 per cent was closer to the average but it fell down on vulnerable road user protection (52 per cent) and standard safety assist systems (50 per cent).  The Suzuki Jimny only scored three stars in a year where the majority of cars earned the full five.

Four other cars achieved fewer than five stars this year, with the Citroen Berlingo, Peugeot Partner, Vauxhall Combo Life and Ford Tourneo Connect getting four stars. The Vauxhall, Peugeot and Citroen – which are all derivatives of the same vehicle – scored well for passenger protection (91 per cent) but lost out on pedestrian protection (58 per cent) and driver assistance (68 per cent) Ford’s Tourneo Connect achieved strong adult passenger protection but was let down by lower child occupant protection (79 per cent) and relatively low pedestrian protection (65 per cent).

Read more at: https://inews.co.uk/essentials/lifestyle/cars/car-news/these-are-the-cars-with-the-lowest-safety-ratings-of-2018/