The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) has increased its requirements in safety by raising its criteria for 5 stars annually.
As the new conditions of the Euro NCAP state, a car awarded 5 stars should achieve an overall score of at least 80% and score a minimum percentage on the following categories: at least 80% of the available points in Adult Protection, 75% in Child Protection, 60% in Pedestrian Protection and 60% in Safety Assist. These changes are designed to improve the safety of today's vehicles for both passengers and the pedestrians.
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Unfortunately for the Jeep Compass, it was awarded only two stars under the 2012 new criteria.
The 4x4 was tested with an optional side thorax airbag, but its test results did show poor protection levels. Additionally, it only scored 23% in pedestrian protection, which means that Jeep will need to work much harder on safety measures in order to score more highly in the future.
In contrast, the new Honda Civic was awarded the maximum five star rating. Achieving high scores in all areas, it rated particularly well in Safety Assist and it also scored highly in Honda's Collision Mitigation Brake System (CMBS) - a radar-based autonomous emergency braking technology rewarded by Euro NCAP Advanced in 2010
Michiel van Ratingen, Euro NCAP Secretary General, said that the results show clearly that a 5 star rating these days means a lot more than a 5 star rating some years ago.
"Many car makers have moved on and so have we. Cars based on older technology, brushed up and marketed as new are not providing the same levels as safety as the newest models developed against the new targets. Consumers interested in a fair comparison will not be fooled by these results," he added.
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