Group Offers Alternatives to Neutered Safety Ratings

A leading consumer advocacy group calls the U.S. government's 2008 crash-test ratings useless and offers what it calls a more comprehensive look at the model year's best and worst performers.

The new ratings, published by pro-consumer lobby group the Consumer Federation of America, come just as the National Highway Traffic Safety Admin. moves closer to announcing revamped rules governing its own vehicle-safety scores.

Jack Gilles, director-public affairs for the Washington-based CFA, admits NHTSA's current crash-test rating system has done more to advance automobile safety than any other cause.

But because 96% of all '08 vehicles NHTSA tested received four or five stars, it makes it impossible for consumers to separate the truly good performers from the worst, he says.

Consumer advocate Clarence Ditlow adds, “The government rating program, though well-intentioned, has buried important differences in how the vehicles compare in the crash tests and neutered one of the program's most valuable features — stimulating competition.”

However, NHTSA already has reworked its crash-test ratings system, says spokesman Rae Tyson.