Currently reading: Latest BMW 5 Series awarded five stars by Euro NCAP
But the other latest test car, the facelifted Fiat Doblo, scores just three stars

The latest BMW 5 Series has been awarded a five star safety rating by Euro NCAP, scoring a strong 81% overall.

Euro NCAP said the car showed good all-round protection thanks to its new platform, while avoidance tests results were improved by the car’s autonomous braking system.

Pedestrian safety was also highly rated by Euro NCAP, thanks to the 5-Series’s standard-fit warning system and active bonnet.

But the second new crash test result, from the recently facelifted Fiat Doblo, amounted to just three stars due to its aging platform – which is approaching 17 years – and lack of avoidance technology.

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Euro NCAP expects the model’s sibling, the Vauxhall Combo, to fare even worse if it were retested because that car hasn’t recently been updated. However, an all-new model is due next year and is being co-developed by Vauxhall’s new owners, PSA.

Secretary general of Euro NCAP Michiel van Ratingen said, “BMW has led the way with a new 5 Series that features lots of driver assistance systems which Euro NCAP believes will transform safety in the years to come.

“But Fiat’s line-up now features several cars that have been on the market for a long time and their safety is well behind the class leaders.”

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The BMW 5 Series has been the go-to mid-sized executive saloon, and G30 generation brings 7 Series luxury limo quality to the class, but is it still the best?

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artill 13 April 2017

As the star rating now have

As the star rating now have almost nothing to do with how well the car stands up to an impact, and everything to do with the added electronics, NCAP rating are pointless.
benanderson89 18 April 2017

artill wrote:

artill wrote:

As the star rating now have almost nothing to do with how well the car stands up to an impact, and everything to do with the added electronics, NCAP rating are pointless.

I agree with artill. It's like the Mustang that scored the same Adult protection and child ratings as an Audi TT, yet only received 2 stars where the Audi walked away with 4 for no other reason than a misplaced sticker and a lack of electronic nannies - many cars receive scores for having the option of certain nannies, too, they don't even need to be standard. This is why I've started looking at the NHTSA tests from America and the rollover tests from Sweden. Both of those have comprehensive scores for actual impacts, and both of them perform tests that aren't even featured on Euro N-Cap, like the small overlap test. The nannies are always listed as nice-to-have extras.

bowsersheepdog 18 April 2017

artill wrote:

artill wrote:

As the star rating now have almost nothing to do with how well the car stands up to an impact, and everything to do with the added electronics, NCAP rating are pointless.

Yep, spot-on. And all this rubbish about rating on account of friendliness to pedestrians too. I don't want a car that folds up and suffers thousands of pounds worth of damage just because some halfwit walked into the road with his/her eyes fixed on updating their Facebook page on a mobile 'phone instead of looking where they were going.

Unless a law is going to be passed that requires CCTV footage to be used to force the halfwit to pay my insurance back every penny to ensure I don't have to pay more for their stupidity, and I doubt that will ever happen, nor would it save any of the inconvenience involved for the motorist if it did. No. Make cars deadlier to pedestrians to incentivize them to take better care of themselves.

On another note, is that picture of the Doblo before or after it was crashed?