IIHS Gives Small Cars Poor Marks for Bumper Collisions

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is best known for telling you how well your vehicle will protect you in the event of an accident, but it also tests how much minor fender-benders will cost to repair.

IIHS conducted bumper tests on seven small cars to find out how well the bumpers would hold up in the event of a full-width hit at 6 mph, as well as front and rear corner hits at 3 mph. The answer is, not too well.

Out of seven cars, none received the top rating of Good. The Honda Fit, Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio, Mini Cooper and Toyota Yaris all received the lowest rating, Poor, while the Chevy Aveo managed a Marginal rating and the Smart ForTwo was rated Acceptable thanks to its pre-painted, dent-resistant body panels, which are inexpensive and easy to replace.

How does IIHS make its calculations? Take the Rio, for example: The full-bumper test caused $3,701 in damage (30% of the car’s purchase price). Overall, total repairs to the bumper cost $9,380, which was the highest total in the test.

In order to receive a Good rating, each repair would have had to average less than $500.

Just something to keep in mind when buying a small car.

Comments

Thats simply crazy.Manufacturers parts pricing and body shop labor rates have all gone way off course.I repaired a $1700 estimated bumper bender for $450 once.There was no structural damage and I replaced the decklid with a used one (and repainted it),new GM bumper cover and aftermarket absorber/rebar.This is the pork in the system today and why insurance rates are so ridiculous.

Would the high prices of the repairs be related to the way cars, especially small cars are being made these days, especially cars with bodies designed to crumple and absorb most of the impact in a collision?

What a waste of a perfectly good new automobile. Wonder how many people actually make their purchase decision basd on how well a bumper holds up. Doubt there are any at all.