Three new family cars...

Three new family cars have been given a glowing report by independч­ent crash test body Euro NCAP. It’s just awarded five-star ratings to the Mercedes C-Class, Renault Laguna and Volvo V70. The top marks were handed out for good adult occupant protection – where each model scored 36 points.ч 

The Mercedes didn’t fare so well in the child occupant section, however. Poor labelling – particularly about the dangers of seating a child in the front without disabling the airbags – meant it earned only three stars in this category. The Volvo and Laguna were awarded four stars.

Two newcomers to the supermini sector have also been rated. The Mazda 2 scored five stars for adult protection and four in child safety, while the Daihatsu Materia only achieved four and three stars in these categories respectively. The Materia was criticised for hazardous dashboard structures, plus the potential for knee injuries during front impact crash tests.

Honda’s Civic missed out on the top score, too, getting four stars for both adult and child protection. The hatchback was let down by a problem with the driver’s airbag. Testers found “it was not sufficiently well inflated to prevent the driver’s head from contacting the steering wheel”.