G
greenwagon
Guest
I'm still not keen on the new Mazda Impreza, but here's good news about it from the Subaru New Zealand website, though it also suggests that it is being promoted as a safe company car 
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:Monday, September 3rd, 2007
[size=10pt]Impreza's perfect 9 star[/size]
Crashworthiness testing by the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) has resulted in the new generation Impreza gaining the top safety ratings for both occupant and pedestrian safety.
Impreza is only the second car world wide to get a 9 star safety rating.
Impreza has achieved a five-star ANCAP safety rating the highest possible for occupant protection. However it also achieved the maximum four-star pedestrian protection rating.
This makes it the first car to achieve the maximum nine out of nine possible safety stars in New Zealand and only the second car worldwide.
ANCAP is backed by Land Transport New Zealand, the New Zealand Automobile Association and all the major motoring organisations and statutory transport bodies in Australia.
Safety is a major consideration during the vehicle purchase, said Chris Rickards, the General Manager of Subaru of New Zealand. It is now undeniable that we are producing some of the safest vehicles in the world.
This new Impreza has the maximum five-star occupant safety and four-star pedestrian safety partly due to its passive safety features like its ring-shaped reinforced frame.
Then there is an excellent active safety Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive and Vehicle Dynamics Control stability control. This should be a major influencer for not only private buyers, but also businesses wanting to offer a safe environment for their employees.
Mr. Rickards added: These ratings are testament to the superb engineering of Fuji Heavy Industries, the maker of Subaru cars.
Innovations such as the Vehicle Dynamics Control stability system are standard across the entire Impreza line-up as is All Wheel Drive, six airbags and advanced high-performance braking systems.
Subaru has consistently brought new safety features to the market at a rapid rate and thats reflected in the latest ANCAP results.
These cars are designed for real-world conditions and its a tremendous bonus to see them performing so well in ANCAPs rigorous testing too.
These results show that safety doesnt have to come with a price premium with the Impreza range starting at $26,990.
ANCAPs ratings are recognized by equivalent organisations in the U.S.A., Europe, Japan and Korea, where crash testing is also performed and results shared with ANCAP.
Crash test procedures include a frontal offset crash at 64km/h, a side impact test at 50km/h and a pedestrian test, which indicates likely injuries to a person hit by a vehicle travelling at 40km/h. Vehicles can also undergo an optional pole test, where the car travels sideways at 29 km/h, striking a round pole lined up with the drivers head. This measures the effectiveness of head protecting side airbags and can result in extra points being scored.
New Impreza achieved the following results:
Offset test: 14.93 (out of 16)
Side impact test: 15.73 (out of 16)
Pole test: 2 (out of 2)
Seat belt warnings: 2 (out of 3)
Total = 34.66 (out of a possible 37)
Pedestrian test: 27.76 (out of 36)