Honda Accord gets four ANCAP stars

At a time when the maximum five-star ANCAP rating is almost a given for major brands, and the latest Kia Cerato hatch has taken the top rating, the four-star score for the Accord is a shock.

It failed to reach the grade in an offset-frontal impact, one of the foundations tests for the Australasian New-Car Assessment Program's testing, providing insufficient protection for the driver's legs.

The Accord result follows several other four-star results, including the Ranger Rover Evoque and Jeep Grand Cherokee, which also fell short in the frontal-offset scoring as ANCAP has sticked to its original criteria despite the sister European NCAP program winding back its requirements in that area.

It also comes despite a wide range of available high-tech safety assistance equipment - radar cruise control, blind-spot assistance, adaptive lights and automatic emergency braking - on the 2013 Accord.

Honda Australia is playing defense on the ANCAP result, referring all Carsguide questions to a two-line prepared statement. "Honda Australia is surprised and disappointed with the ANCAP result for the all-new Accord," it says. "The Accord has an impeccable 37-year history and this ninth-generation is no exception."

It points to the five-star ANCAP rating for its most-recent new arrival, the latest CR-V SUV that went on sale last November. ANCAP chief, Lauchlan McIntosh, admits the Honda result is a surprise but there is no mistake. "I don't think they'd deliberatley gone out of their way to do this," McIntosh tells Carsguide. "That's the test. That's the result. We checked it very carefully to make sure the result is what it is."

But he says it confirms the need for independent safety testing.  "You do these tests and people ask why we bother. That (the Honda result) shows the advantage of ANCAP.  Every now and then we get a result that's not what you expect. It's not a bad result, but others do better."

He also reinforces the five-star message for all carmakers and says that, despite the growing number of brands with safety assistance technologies, the star ratings still come back to the basics. "It really shows the need to continue testing and show people these results. We are now getting to the stage where we're expecting five stars from the well-known brands. The base hurdle is something you've got to get over. That's why we do the testing. It shows you the complexity, still, of making cars. You've got to be careful and watching."

This reporter is on Twitter: @paulwardgover