Embargo 12.30pm 6 August 2008
FIRST LOCALLY MADE 5-STAR CAR
The Australasian New Car Assessment Program, Australia’s leading vehicle safety
advocate, today announced a five-star safety rating for the Australian made Ford Falcon FG
sedan – the first time a locally made vehicle has received a maximum safety rating.
The Falcon was awarded the 5-star rating following a series of crash tests conducted by
ANCAP.
ANCAP Chair, Lauchlan McIntosh, congratulated Ford and said that this is a significant
milestone for an Australian made car.
“The Ford Falcon now leads the pack in safety for the large Australian made family car –
ANCAP has high expectations that this achievement will encourage other manufacturers to
build 5-star cars,” Mr McIntosh said.
The Falcon scored well in the frontal offset, side impact and optional pole tests, providing
strong protection for the vehicle occupants. The vehicle tested was a base model Falcon
XT which has dual front airbags and front-seat head-protecting side airbags and electronic
stability control (ESC) as standard. ESC is a requirement for a 5 star rating.
All FG Falcon sedans, with the exception of the LPG fuelled model, have been awarded a 5
star rating. The LPG model (which does not have ESC) scores 4 stars.
Unfortunately, pedestrians do not fare as well with the Falcon sedan earning 2 stars out of
4. "This is an improvement on the previous Falcon, but there is still plenty of room for
improving pedestrian protection," Mr McIntosh said.
ANCAP crash tests new vehicles, awards them a star rating for safety and publicises the
results to the motoring public. ANCAP is supported by all Australian and New Zealand
motoring clubs, Australian state governments, the New Zealand government, the Victorian
Transport Accident Commission, NRMA Insurance and the FIA Foundation.
For a full list of ANCAP’s vehicle safety ratings and other vehicle safety information, go to
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Contact:
Lauchlan McIntosh
ANCAP Chair
0418 424 886
Allan Yates
ANCAP
0421 150 229
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