The tiny Smart ForTwo, recently introduced in the U.S. car market, gave a less-than-stellar performance in its first crash test by the federal government’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The FortTwo got four out of a possible five stars for protecting the driver in a front impact crash but just three stars for passenger protection. Three-star scores have become rare in government crash tests, with most newer models getting four- and five-star scores.
Three stars means an occupant stands a 21% to 35% chance of a serious injury in a front crash with a similar-sized vehicle. The chance of injury would be higher in an impact with a larger vehicle.
At just under nine feet long, the ForTwo is the smallest mass-market car sold in the United States.
