Mazda 3 - Most Dangerous Vehicle #20

[altspace]

Of the Top 20 Most Dangerous Vehicles, the Mazda 3 came in at #20.

20. Mazda3
Four-Door/Five-Door Hatchback

SCORE: 113

Consumer Reports' accident avoidance: Much better than average

The Mazda3 has been the darling of automotive critics. The styling is unique and still stands out several years after introduction, the powertrain is peppy, and it's one of the best-handling small cars. Now for the bad part: Both the sedan and hatchback versions of the 3 fared very poorly in side-impact crash tests, garnering a lowly three-star rating from NHTSA and the lowest "Poor" rating from the IIHS. Side airbags aren't standard, either.

Read more: http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/ve...ngerous-twenty-forbeslife-cx_bh_0726cars.html

 

[SuperStretch18]

Better than the TC at least! BTW, does Mazda still make the b-series pickup?

 

[altspace]

Of course. www.mazdausa.com

 

[SuperStretch18]

(pukey)

 

[tunersteve]

If you read the actual rating from the IIHS, the 3 receives a "good" rating for frontal impact, but receives a "poor" rating for 2004-2007 models mfg. after Aug 2004 without side airbags.

Here's the link to read:
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=524

 

[dmitrik4]

how many of those 20 models did not have side airbags? a car w/out side airbags is going to fare a LOT worse in side impact testing than a model w/ side bags. IIRC, the 3 tested didn't have side bags b/c they're not standard. it's an unfair comparison, IMO.

ha...part of what makes the Yaris dangerous is its "tail-happy handling."