Jeep's new Wrangler is very bad at crashing

Wednesday, 29 May 2019

When it came time to replace the legendary Wrangler, Jeep went all out to retain the off-roader's iconic looks and character. But it seems they may have retained a bit too much.

The new Wrangler will enter the local market with a dismal 1 star ANCAP safety rating, something the safety authority describes as 'concerning'.

It achieved scores of just 50 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 49 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection and 32 per cent for Safety Assist.

'The safety performance of the Wrangler is limited, falling well shy of the expected standard in three of the four key areas of assessment,' said ANCAP Chief Executive, James Goodwin.

**READ MORE:

* Near-perfect small car? Mazda3 scores 98pc in crash test

* Find out who survives: ANCAP gets real with vehicle safety

* Updated Ford Mustang safer, but still only three stars**

'Chest protection was a concern for the driver and rear passenger in each of the frontal crash tests; a number of penalties were applied for structural deformation and potential leg injury hazards; and base variants lack autonomous emergency braking altogether.'

The Wrangler's dismal score was emphasised by the fact that the new Toyota Hiace achieved a 5 star rating at the same time.

New Zealand's top selling van achieved scores of 94 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 88 per cent for Child Occupant Protection, 84 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection and 77 per cent for Safety Assist.

'This is a landmark achievement for the commercial van segment,' said Goodwin.

'This rating shows a new level of market maturity, with modern safety design being prioritised by the majority vehicle brands regardless of the segment or intended use of the vehicle,

'For many, the vehicle is their workplace and Toyota should be applauded for providing the same level of safety in the Hiace as we see in today's passenger cars and SUVs.'

While the previous Hiace held a 4 star rating (under older testing criteria), it was still an older design that placed the driver over the engine, whereas the new model has moved the driver back behind the engine, further enhancing its crash performance.

The all-electric Nissan Leaf that is also due in New Zealand shortly also scored well with 5 stars.

'The rating for the Nissan Leaf provides consumers and fleet buyers with another safe electric vehicle option,' said Goodwin.

'Good levels of protection were observed for adult and child occupants, and performance of its lane keep assist and autonomous emergency braking systems was rated 'Good''