When you’re looking to Side By Side Compare Cars, safety is often a top priority. Understanding vehicle safety ratings is crucial for making informed decisions. One key metric to consider is the Overall Vehicle Score, which provides a star rating based on a vehicle’s performance in various crash tests.
Decoding the Overall Vehicle Score
The Overall Vehicle Score uses a five-star system to represent a vehicle’s safety performance. This score isn’t simply an average; it’s carefully calculated using the probabilities of injury from frontal and side crash tests, along with a projected probability of injury in rollover accidents. These values are weighted to reflect real-world crash injury statistics, offering a comprehensive safety assessment.
Here’s a breakdown of what each star rating signifies when you side by side compare cars:
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐: Significantly lower than average injury risk.
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐: Lower than average to average injury risk.
- ⭐⭐⭐: Average to higher than average injury risk.
- ⭐⭐: Higher than average injury risk.
- ⭐: Significantly higher than average injury risk.
Comparing Cars Safely: Class and Weight Matter
It’s tempting to directly compare star ratings when you side by side compare cars across different types, but it’s essential to understand the limitations. The Overall Vehicle Score, heavily influenced by the frontal crash test rating, is only truly comparable between vehicles within the same class and with similar weights. Specifically, you should only side by side compare cars if their weights are within 250 pounds of each other.
Let’s clarify with examples for effective side by side car comparison:
- Incorrect Comparison: Comparing a 4,500-pound SUV to a 3,000-pound sedan is not valid. They are in different classes and exceed the weight difference limit.
- Incorrect Comparison: Comparing a 3,600-pound pickup truck to a 3,400-pound minivan is also not appropriate, despite the weight being close, because they are different vehicle classes.
- Correct Comparison: You can accurately side by side compare the safety ratings of a 3,400-pound passenger car with a 3,650-pound passenger car. They belong to the same class and meet the weight proximity requirement.
When you side by side compare cars, remember to focus on vehicles in similar categories and weight ranges to make meaningful safety assessments using the Overall Vehicle Score. This ensures you’re making a relevant comparison for your safety considerations.
