2018 Jeep Wrangler JL bombs Euro NCAP crash tests with one-star result
It's not like it has a perfect score in the US, either, but at least it has more than a single star.
In the US, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is responsible for giving out the one-to-five star crash test ratings you see on window stickers. In Europe, that job falls to the Euro New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP). As Jeep just found out, it's a little stricter than NHTSA's testing regimen.
The 2018 Jeep Wrangler received a dismal one-star safety rating from the Euro NCAP's battery of tests. While the rating applies to both three-door and five-door variants of the Wrangler JL, the test was conducted using a Wrangler Unlimited in Sahara trim with a 2.2-liter turbocharged diesel engine.
You can dive deep into the Euro NCAP website to read the entire report on the Wrangler, but I'll dish out a few salient details here. The Wrangler achieved 50 percent of the maximum available points for adult occupant protection in a crash, 69 percent for child occupants, 49 percent for pedestrians and 32 percent for safety systems. In Europe, the Wrangler's safety systems are limited to a seatbelt reminder and a driver-operated speed limiter warning system.
"It is truly disappointing to see a brand-new car being put on sale in 2018 with no autonomous braking system and no lane assistance," said Michiel van Ratingen, the secretary general of Euro NCAP, in a statement. "It is high time we saw a product from the Fiat Chrysler group offering safety to rival its competitors."
In the US at least, that high time isn't very far off. In its statement to Roadshow, a Fiat Chrysler spokesperson said that an integrated radar and camera module nestled behind the rearview mirror will give the 2019 Wrangler both automatic braking and adaptive cruise control capabilities. The automaker also reiterated that the car "meets or exceeds federal safety requirements in every market in which it is sold." It also stated that the Wrangler "is engineered to deliver... unique driving experiences under the most demanding conditions," and "testing protocols that apply exclusively to urban scenarios may not align with such a vehicle."
For context, the 2018 Wrangler achieved a three-star front crash rating in NHTSA's tests, and it has not yet been evaluated by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which subjects vehicles to tests and evaluations that go above and beyond NHTSA's efforts. Unlike Euro NCAP, NHTSA does not factor active safety systems into its final star ratings.
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