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Tuesday, April 06, 2010

Highlight of the Safest Vehicles for 2010

Imagine brand new cars, say, of all makes and sizes, being crushed mercilessly --- on purpose. That's exactly what the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does, to find out which are the safest vehicles to drive year after year. 2010's no different, as they usually do the testing the year before to determine which the safest cars are.

Here's a small highlight of the safest vehicles for 2010 with the top for each category.

Large Cars
Buick LaCrosse – The LaCrosse scored the highest possible score (5 stars) in both frontal and side-impact crash tests. And the way the front and all-wheel-drive trims are designed, it has earned a four out of 5 in preventing a rollover. The LaCrosse comes standard with front and front-side airbags, plus an option to include rear airbags, making this one of 2010's safest vehicles.

Midsize Cars
Audi A3 – Scoring “Good” (the top rating) for frontal offset, side impact, rear crash protection and roof strength, Audi definitely put safety first when building the A3. Anti-lock brakes, Electronic Brake-pressure Distribution, Electronic Differential Lock are just some of the features you will come to expect and love about the A3.

Small Cars
Honda Civic (4-door model, excluding Si) – The old guard for safe cars, the 2010 Civic earns 5 stars when it comes to driver/passenger safety in a front/rear-side collision as well as the rear passenger safety when it comes to side collisions. It earns a 4 in rollover protection, which is still impressive, considering how light the Civic is. Truly one of the safest vehicles ever built.

Midsize SUVs
Dodge Journey – The Journey, while combining SUV spaciousness with car comforts, earns the top spot in the midsize category. With good scores in crash tests, plus electronic stability control that comes standard, it has earned an IIHS “Top Safety Pick” designation, sharing this spot with only 3 other SUVs, making it one of the safest vehicles to drive.

Small SUVs
Honda Element – The Element ranks 10th in the list of Affordable Compact SUVs --- based on its price and safety performance. It scores 5 out of 5 stars in front/side impact crashes and receives an overall score of “Good.” Also belonging to the “Top Safety Pick” distinction, the Honda Element is equal parts compact SUV and safest vehicle.

If you're buying a new car this year, it'd be tops to consider one of the 5 safest vehicles for 2010. The IIHS already did the crash testing, so you won't have to.

(Source: http://www.iihs.org/ratings/)

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