Auto Trader NZ
Published 3 September 2020
The Kia Cerato has joined fellow Kia models, the Soul and Carnival, as cars recommended by American insurance companies for their high levels of safety.
The Cerato (known as ‘Forte’ in the US) has been recognised with a 2010 ‘Top Safety Pick’ award in the Small Car category by the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
It picked up the ‘Good’ rating top honors the highest achievable in frontal, side, rear and rollover impact crash safety tests. The 2010 Kia Soul urban crossover achieved a similar rating a few months ago and Carnival won its first ‘Top Safety Pick’ in 2006.
For the first time the IIHS procedures included a roof strength test to measure protection in a rollover in addition to ratings based on results from frontal, side and rear impact crash tests – the Kia Cerato scored the highest rating in the rollover test. Vehicles must have electronic stability control (ESC) available to be eligible.
“Safety is becoming an increasingly important consideration among buyers of today’s cars”, says Todd McDonald, General Manager of Kia Motors New Zealand.
“Kia Motors was among the first to specify electronic stability control in everyday cars more than five years ago in New Zealand, along with multiple airbags – we don’t compromise where safety is concerned,” he says.
“ESC has been made standard on all Kia models sold in New Zealand because we view ESC as an essential aid in lowering the risk of a vehicle being involved in a crash. If every car on our roads was fitted with ESC, like Kia, you would see a dramatic reduction in crashes, injuries and deaths.”
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