Subcompact ‘minicars’ are really bad in this tough crash test - Top Down Auto Blog

[Jesus Malverde]

Subcompact cars fared poorly in new crash tests performed by an insurance industry group.

None of the 12 minicars tested got the highest rating of “good” from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The Chevrolet Spark was the only car that earned the second-highest rating of “acceptable.” Six of the cars — including the segment’s best-seller, the Nissan Versa — got the lowest rating of “poor.”

All of the cars were from the 2013 or 2014 model years.

“Small, lightweight vehicles have an inherent safety disadvantage. That’s why it’s even more important to choose one with the best occupant protection,” said Joe Nolan, IIHS’s senior vice president for vehicle research.

http://blog.sfgate.com/topdown/2014/01/22/subcompact-minicars-are-really-bad-in-this-tough-crash-test/#19881101=1

[aristocles]

1. Simple applied physics

[Lizzie Poppet]

2. If more people drove them, it would be less of an issue.

Of course they're going to come off second best in a collision with some battle barge of an SUV. That's just basic Newtonian physics.

It's a risk I'm willing to take (I have a motorcycle, too!). I love my Abarth.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. "There is no safety in the cosmos." Alan Watts

[enlightenment]

4. Amazing that the EU,

with so many small, lightweight vehicles, has anyone left alive to drive. Shouldn't they have grossly higher death statistics?

[ForgoTheConsequence]

5. It doesn't help when everyone else is driving a tank.

...