Advice - Safest Saloon

worc

Been on previously asking for advice but with certain work things coming up haven't really gotten a chance to go out and do a proper hunt.

Since taking a breather from looking I thought of safety as an additional consideration and having some experience of how brain injury can impact on a person and their family, I figure buying a 5 star NCAP car is to some extent an investment in your own and your family's futures (an extra 1,000 or so now could prevent some serious heartache if the worst happens)...so car I'm looking for would be:

- saloon
- 5 stars NCAP
- manual
- diesel as I do 25,000km at least a year
- 45MPG when driven without heavy feet (50 would be ideal)
- ideally €7,500 max but for the sake of another €1,000 to get the 5 stars I wouldn't bawk at it
- private/dealer doesn't matter

I have a line of thinking on a car but would be interested to get advice without influencing. I have vague recollection of the NCAP ratings laughed at but I know little so apologies if I'm asking something stupid here.

Anan1

A Citroen C5 would do it without breaking the bank?

BrianD3

The EuroNCAP rating is a good indicator of a car's safety but it's not the only factor, for instance a 5 star heavy car is likely to be safer than a 5 star light car. Some 5 star cars deform less than others - lower deformation may result in the occupants experiencing higher deceleration in moderate speed crashes but the car might retain more survival space in a higher speed crash.

In general the newer the design, the safer the car is.

The largest saloons like Mercedes S classes and BMW 7 series usually don't have a EuroNCAP rating.

A person might ask themselves what is safer:

A 2005 Mercedes S class that weighs ~1900 kg, was introduced in 1999 and has no NCAP rating
A 2005 VW Passat that weighs ~1500 kg, was introduced in 2005 and scored 5 stars with low deformation in NCAP.

Personally I would say the Passat is safer and it would be a reasonable choice for your other requirements too.