The Lexus NX200 secured a five-star safety rating and the Honda Fit secured a four-star rating in the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ Taiwan New Car Assessment Program this quarter.
The program, which the ministry established in 2022, tests the safety of some of the best-selling vehicles in Taiwan.
The ministry tasked the Automotive Research and Testing Center, a government-funded facility in Changhua County, to conduct vehicle collision tests.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Since last year, the center has released the test results of two models each quarter. The highest safety rating is five stars.
The Lexus NX200 was granted a five-star safety rating after scoring 83 percent in protection of adult occupants, 88 percent in child protection, 83 percent in pedestrian protection and 72 percent in safety assistance, the results showed.
The Honda Fit was given a four-star rating after scoring 81 percent in adult occupant protection, 72 percent in child protection, 81 percent in pedestrian protection and 67 percent in safety assistance.
The rating only applies to gasoline-powered Honda Fits, not those powered by hybrid synergy.
The center is to disclose the results of testing of the Nissan X-Trail next quarter, the Toyota Sienta in the third quarter, and the Tesla Model Y and Honda CR-V in the fourth quarter.
Of the vehicles undergoing testing this year, the Nissan X-Trail and Honda CR-V manufacturers volunteered and paid to have their vehicles tested by the center.
The Nissan X-Trail secured a three-star rating last year and the manufacturer asked to have the model tested again this year, the center said.
All of the vehicles to be tested would be procured by mystery shoppers from the market, the center said, adding that evaluation criteria are the same, regardless of whether automakers pay for the tests themselves.
The center was previously scheduled to test the Tesla Model 3 this year, but as it is unavailable for purchase in Taiwan, it is to test the Model Y in the fourth quarter and the Model 3 in the first quarter next year, it said.
From next year, the center would begin testing vehicles’ protection for motorcyclists, cyclists and other road users, it said.
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