When you’re researching your next vehicle using resources like Car And Driver Auto Reviews, understanding safety ratings is crucial. A key metric to consider is the Overall Vehicle Score, often represented as a star rating. This score is designed to give you a quick snapshot of a vehicle’s safety performance in crash tests.
This overall score is calculated by combining the probabilities of injury from frontal and side crash tests with a projected probability of injury in rollover accidents. These individual probabilities are weighted to reflect how common each type of crash is in the real world. The result is then compared to the average injury risk across all vehicles. This comparison determines whether a vehicle’s average injury risk is higher or lower than that average, which translates into the star rating.
Here’s a breakdown of what the star ratings mean in Car and Driver auto reviews and similar safety assessments:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ = Overall injury risk is much less than average.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ = Overall injury risk is less than average to average.
⭐⭐⭐ = Overall injury risk is average to greater than average.
⭐⭐ = Overall injury risk is greater than average.
⭐ = Overall injury risk is much greater than average.
It’s important to remember that when using Car and Driver auto reviews or similar safety ratings, direct comparisons are only valid between vehicles in the same class and with similar weights. Specifically, you should only compare vehicles within a 250-pound weight range of each other.
For example, comparing the safety scores of a 4,500-pound SUV to a 3,000-pound sedan would be inappropriate because they are in different classes and exceed the weight difference limit. Similarly, comparing a 3,600-pound pickup truck to a 3,400-pound minivan isn’t valid due to the class difference, even though they meet the weight criteria. However, it is perfectly valid to compare a 3,400-pound passenger car to a 3,650-pound passenger car because they are in the same class and within the acceptable weight range.
When utilizing Car and Driver auto reviews to assess vehicle safety, always pay attention to these guidelines to ensure you are making informed and relevant comparisons.
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