STOCKHOLM - French carmaker Peugeot's smallest model, the supermini 1007, is the safest small car on the European market, according to findings published here on Tuesday by crash test organisation Euro NCAP.
The list ranks cars by category -- superminis, small family cars, family cars, executive cars, and small multi-purpose vehicles -- and tests protection for adult and child occupants as well as pedestrian.
In the test, the cars are crashed into barriers at various speeds reaching a maximum of 64 kilometers per hour (40 mph).
"It is gratifying to see that more than half of the cars tested in this phase achieved the top five-star rating for adult occupant protection ... giving Europe's car buyers a wider range of safe cars than ever before to choose from," Euro NCAP chairman Claes Tingvall said in a statement.
The Peugeot 1007 received the top score in all categories, with five stars for occupant protection, three stars for child protection and two stars for pedestrian protection (5-3-2).
It placed just ahead of the Renault Clio and Citroen C1.
In the small family car category, the Mercedes A class topped the list, ahead of the Fiat Stilo and the Dacia Logan, which received the lowest rating in the test with a 3-3-1 score.
The representative of British Insurers, Thatcham, said it was "concerned" that the Dacia Logan, an inexpensive car designed by Renault and its Romanian subsidiary Dacia especially for the eastern European market, achieved a "much lower safety rating than that typical in the wider European market."
In the family car category, the BMW 3-series and the VW Passat took the first and second places, while in the executive car group the Lexus GS300 topped the list.
For small multi-purpose vehicles, the Opel/Vauxhall Zafira ranked best, ahead of the Honda FR-V.
The European New Car Assessment Programme is an independent collaboration between road safety authorities in several countries, including Britain, Germany, France, the Netherlands and Sweden, and is recognized by the European Union.
06/28/2005 14:59 GMT