Aa lists used car safety ratings.

rctr, Sep 2, 1:14pm
Interesting one the cruze has been listed as the safest small car. Surely this has to be because they either a spend more time on tow trucks or at dealerships . Or b because they aren't getting purchased second hand when warranty has run out. http://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/71622999/Good-and-bad-used-cars-of-New-Zealand?cid
tamarillo, Sep 2, 3:21pm
Don't get you're thinking. It's based on real world crash data of actual crashes. I don't think number of crashes is involved in the way insurance companies overseas correlate info.
tony9, Sep 2, 3:58pm
And for those who don't want to look at the detail, the newer the car, the better the driver safety rating. What an amazing result.
budgel, Sep 2, 5:04pm
The direct link: http://static.stuff.co.nz/files/safeusedcars.pdf

E39 BMW does well for an older car, the E38 isnt listed but would probably be the same given they have the same features. The E90 onwards does well in the medium size group.

Some of the shopping baskets dont look too good!
rpvr, Sep 3, 2:52pm
Most of the shopping baskets are not even on the list!
budgel, Sep 3, 3:56pm
That's why I said some of the shopping baskets. Check out the often recommended Demio for example. I think smaller/cheaper/older cars are always going to compare badly with newer higher priced versions.
mopsy3, Sep 3, 4:32pm
Safe because it spends most of it's working life being repaired, thus not being on the road decreasing it's risk of even being in a crash.
gazzat22, Sep 3, 4:33pm
Looks like bigger and newer are safer! What a big surprise!
sr2, Sep 3, 4:44pm
I don't think you understand how they analyze the data, the number of accidents a particular model is involved in has no bearing on the final results.
brapbrap8, Sep 3, 5:02pm
Interesting to see that the newer Subaru Impreza does well, considering that they are mostly imports with little in the way of safety equipment.

Also funny to read the comments on the Stuff article by some of the clueless people proclaiming that their 97 Commodore or 89 Hilux would win in a crash with a new hatchback.
piperguy, Aug 2, 12:34pm
I have a relative who is convinced beyond all doubt that the only thing that is important is mass, i.e. he would drive the heaviest car he could find and then no matter what he hit, if it was smaller he would win. Not interested in any further discussion.