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The FG petrol sedan range, from the $36,490 XT model up, has earned a 5-star rating in the Australasian New Car Assessment Program.
It is the first Australian-made car to receive the top ranking and should help give the Falcon range a boost after some lower than expected sales results.
“The petrol FG Falcon sedan range has been judged by ANCAP as being the safety leader among locally-manufactured vehicles, cementing Ford's reputation for safety leadership,” says Ford Australia President Bill Osborne.
“We design our cars to deliver real-world safety benefits. This is a resounding third party endorsement of the extensive safety development program undertaken for the all-new FG Falcon.”
The FG Falcon joins the European-sourced Focus and Mondeo as 5-star ANCAP models in the blue oval's range. However, the E-Gas range of LPG-fuel Falcons missed out on the top honour because it does not have stability control. It received a 4-star rating. Falcon's rivals, the Holden VE Commodore and Toyota Aurion, have four-star ANCAP ratings.
To achieve the 5-star rating a vehicle must pass four key criteria above a minimum score. The tests are an offset front test, a side impact test, a pole impact test and the car must have electronic stability control.
Ford crash-tested 426 actual cars and ran more than 5000 computer-simulated tests during the development of the FG. The company used Ford's facilities in Australia and Detroit, as wellas sister-brand Volvo's Swedish facility. Head airbags for driver and front-seat passenger are standard across the range. The G6E and G6E Turbo have curtain and thorax airbags as standard and are optional on other models.
Ford Australia senior executive Trevor Worthington says the rating comes at an important time and vindicates the extensive safety work the company has invested in.
“Consumers are more aware of the importance of vehicle safety,” Worthington says. “As the company that first made driver airbags standard and introduced stability control, Beltminder, dual-stage airbags and a reverse camera on Australian-built vehicles, anticipating these growing consumer demands for increased safety was a top priority.”
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