Latest Euro NCAP crash test results - Fiat Idea

Overall occupant protection 4/5 stars
Front impact 56%
Side impact 83%
Child protection 47% 2/5 stars
Pedestrian 22% 1/4 stars

While the Idea tested comes fitted with curtain airbags as standard, to protect the heads of occupants in side impacts, side airbags are not fitted to every model.

The diagrams in our gallery clearly show how this arrangement can provide widely varying results in the side impact tests, with good protection for the head but weak results for the chest.

In a head-on collision, the driver's chest was found to be at risk of injury through contact with the steering wheel. Hard structures in the dashboard could also injure the knees and thighs of both front seat passengers.

The front passenger airbag can be deactivated so a rear-facing child seat can be used safely, but Euro NCAP thought the information provided to the driver about the status of the airbag was inadequate.

More points would have been awarded if ISOFIX child seat mountings were fitted as standard across the range. Testers also found described the forward movement of the heads of both child dummies as excessive in the child protection tests.

There were some points on the bonnet of the Fiat that would offer cushioning in a collision with a pedestrian, but no marks were awarded for the leading edge of the car.