Here a link to the '04 Prius. It fared quite well in the rollover category. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/NCAP/Cars/2971.html
It isn't clear to me whether the tested car had the optional side airbags. Does anyone know? I figure to get an AM or BC package in part for the side air bags and it would be nice to know if I get a 4 or 5 star rating
I guess they only test what comes standard, meaning that rating given is without side air bags. However, they apparently may later test one with side air bags if they can acquire another model. -m.
I believe that they only use equipment that is standard on all of their test cars. It would be helpful if they also conducted additional tests on cars optionally equipped with side airbags.
I don't know, every time someone gives them a vehicle, they destroy it! If my kids did that to their toys, I don't think I'd give them any more ;-)
It sure must be an interesting job working at one of the crash testing facilities and seeing all of these nice brand new cars line up to be annihilated!
Ya and you could take home the good parts that are left over and build your on car an chimera of the tested cars. That reminds me of an urban legend at the Ford assembly plant I work summers while in college. This guy took a part out to the trash dump on a regular basis and smuggled other out in his lunch pail until he assembled an entire Falcon at his home. It was a amalgam of several model years. There was in fact a group that took parts out to the trash area and smuggled them home but they were selling parts. That at least was true because it was in the local paper for a few days.
The NHTSA tests the version with the minimum safety equipment, so that any owner of the car can be assured of at least the rated safety index. I think I read somewhere that adding side air bags typically adds one star to the safety level. I would not accept a car with less than all available safety equipment, and if I was a car maker I would not sell a car without air bags all the way around. I am surprised that Toyota makes side air bags optional.
