March 28, 2025 • 8 mins
Car safety ratings are important when buying a new car, but are they too harsh?
Kevin Milne is in the market for a new car for his daughter and talks to Jack Tame about it.
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Teams podcast
from News Talk z EDB.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Seventeen minutes past nine on News Talks EDB, Aaron has
flipped me a note to say, Jack, I totally agree
with you. I binged all four episodes of Adolescents in
one night and couldn't stop talking about it for days thereafter.
Thanks Aaron. Yeah, it's funny. I see in the UK
now they're actually talking about even Kirstaff and the Prime
(00:34):
Minister has lent support to us. They're talking about screening
it in all schools is a kind of educational thing
because you know, it's about knife crime, it's about a
stabbing incident, and obviously they have a big problem with
that kind of thing in the UK at the moment.
But yeah, Aaron was affected, like I am, Jack, really
looking forward to watching a lesson. Of course, it was
recommended in our screen time segment just a couple of
(00:54):
weeks ago on News Talks ZEDB. So we'll catch up
with our screen time expert Tara ten and see what
the next adolescence is going to be. Right now, they're
time to catch up with Kevin Meln he's with us
this morning. More Dian Kevin, what Jack, have you seen
this is yet? No?
Speaker 3 (01:07):
I haven't. Actually, I'm sort of I'm one of those
people who always who thinks they're up with the play
and then somebody else says they're watching. They're right on
past that, because like I'm working my way through.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
Right, okay, but yeah, you're not to play given, I'm
sorry if you're working even I was two years late
to teed Less, So if you're working through ted Less
so now then I'm afraid that we can probably safely
say you're not up with a play.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. I realized that. No, I
will now you've said it, I will have a little squiz.
It's stunning Ado Lessons.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
It is just it is. Yeah, I'm not I'm not
hamming it up one iota, and I cannot remember being
as moved by a TV show, certainly in recent years.
So if you have a chance, it's only four episodes
and they're only about forty five minutes or an hour each,
so very much. It's on Netflix.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
What is it?
Speaker 2 (02:00):
It's on Netflix, But you need to I'll tell you this.
Here's my recommendation. If you're going to watch it, make
sure you save half an hour afterwards. Don't do it
as the very last thing you do before you go
to sleep. No, because I honestly, if you can go
and read a book or something afterwards, just to take
your mind off it for a bit, not because it's
you know, a horror or anything like that and really
(02:22):
really gory or graphic, just because it's really affecting and
you were sitting there like I was just kind of stewing,
you know. Anyway, speaking of a lessons, your daughter is
looking at buying a new car.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
Yeah, I've been looking for a little hatchback for Tommy.
Of course, in the back of my mind are those
dramatic ads on TV about the safety ratings on cars.
My brother was killed in a car crash when he
was exactly the same age as Tommy. So I didn't
want to buy an unsafe car. My wife said, only
buying the car up to you, but it must have
(02:55):
a good safety rating. I was looking at hatchbacks around
the ten thousand dollars mark, and the dealer I know
put me onto a twenty eleven Suzuki Swift Imple for
eight grand I remembered for a small car that Suzuki
Swifts had a pretty good reputation for safety. I was
about to buy it, but when I put the cars
(03:16):
regio into the government's safety ratings Right Cars, the car
got just three stars out of five for general safety,
which was considered marginal, and just one star out of
five for driver safety driver safety meaning very poor. This
surprised me. I went online and found the Automobile Association's
(03:39):
review of the twenty eleven Suzuki Swift when it was
published when the car came into the country. It said fun,
safe and affordable. The two thy and eleven Suzuki Swift
notably exceeded the thresholds for a coveted five star Euro
end cap safety rating. So how come, I asked myself,
(04:02):
According to the same ratings, it's so unsafe now, But
I thought for my daughter's sake, I'd take no risks
from buy a newer car. For eleven thousand, I found
a great little two thousand and fifty Suzuki Swift, New Zealand,
new new tires, seven air bags, Bluetooth, et cetera. Again,
(04:22):
I checked at safety ratings. It was the same as
the two thousand and eleven car. Marginal for general safety,
very poor for driver safety, and I'm thinking what's going on.
Eleven grands a lot of money for kids first car.
It's what a lot of parents spend on their own cars.
(04:44):
I'm told by the dealers that has more safety innovations
come out in brand new cars, the safety ratings for
older models drop and drop. It's not like those older
cars are getting any less safe. It's about how they
measure against brand new cars on the market with innovations
like bicycle detectors that we're getting this year. If this
(05:07):
is so, I reckon that the safety ratings are a
bit misleading. Ten year old cars that have been looked
after are, in my opinion, not unsafe. They're just less
safe than new cars. People shouldn't be put off buying them.
There's a world of difference between the ten year old
car I've now found from a daughter and the ridiculous
(05:29):
cardboard car featured in the safety ratings. AD.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Yeah, it's a really really interesting point and something I've
experienced recently too, because we upgraded from the single car
we have, which is a Toyota Corolla Hatchback, and we
bought a new, well a newer, still secondhand Toyota Corolla Hatchback,
but yes, very very glamorous. But here's the thing. We
(05:55):
had a five star end cap rating. But I realized,
and the good thing was that the newer car did
have more earbags and that kind of thing. But I
realized that that some of the reason it had the
new or had had the full safety rating was because
it has things like lane departure warning, so it beeps
at you it's going to lane departure. It has like
an automatic break function if you're getting close to things,
(06:16):
and it has lots of things that beep at you.
But of course, after driving it for a month, we
actually found that some of those things that were beeping
at us actually probably made us less safe, because you know,
like if you're just going around a car in the
middle of the road that's turning or something, and all
of a sudden, the car kind of lurches and screams
at you when you're not expecting it, it can be
quite unsettling. So I ended up actually turning off some
(06:38):
of those safety I measures, Yeah, go into the system
and turn it off in order to make us safer.
And it was like, ah, I think we might be
prioritizing the wrong thing here, you know.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Yeah, it's interesting thing I just think, Yeah, I just
think there's a better way of explaining what those safety
ratings are. It doesn't mean to say in my opinion,
and I don't I'm no expert, obviously. Yeah, in my opinion,
it doesn't mean to say you're not safe. It means
that newer cars had have greater safety. Yeah, but of
(07:08):
course you can't afford those cars, so you have to
buy the older car, particularly if you're buying the family members.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (07:15):
I mean you can't afford to buy new cats of
the old family. You can't afford to buy it for yourself.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
And yeah, I mean the other the other thing I
think about too, is that, you know, is the safety
of other people. So so you know, of course there's
you as the driver want to be safe and you
want your passengers to be safe. But you know, I
look at some of the monstrously large vehicles around the
place and I'm like, man, this is not making pedestrians
any safer.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
No, hell yeah, yeah, no, anyway, that's right.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Hey, thank you for that, Kevin. That's really interesting. And yeah,
I hope that Tommy appreciates your your expertise on on
that front. Thank you for your feedback as well. Jack
really enjoyed Kevin's comments this morning. He's totally right regarding
the safety ratings. It's a funny old thing. Ninety two
ninety two. If you want to send us some message
this morning, Jacket Newspook SAIDB dot co dot nz is
(08:04):
the email address for.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
More Fromaturday Morning with Jack Tame. Listen live to news
Talks at B from nine am Saturday, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Teams podcast
from News Talk z EDB.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Seventeen minutes past nine on News Talks EDB, Aaron has
flipped me a note to say, Jack, I totally agree
with you. I binged all four episodes of Adolescents in
one night and couldn't stop talking about it for days thereafter.
Thanks Aaron. Yeah, it's funny. I see in the UK
now they're actually talking about even Kirstaff and the Prime
(00:34):
Minister has lent support to us. They're talking about screening
it in all schools is a kind of educational thing
because you know, it's about knife crime, it's about a
stabbing incident, and obviously they have a big problem with
that kind of thing in the UK at the moment.
But yeah, Aaron was affected, like I am, Jack, really
looking forward to watching a lesson. Of course, it was
recommended in our screen time segment just a couple of
(00:54):
weeks ago on News Talks ZEDB. So we'll catch up
with our screen time expert Tara ten and see what
the next adolescence is going to be. Right now, they're
time to catch up with Kevin Meln he's with us
this morning. More Dian Kevin, what Jack, have you seen
this is yet? No?
Speaker 3 (01:07):
I haven't. Actually, I'm sort of I'm one of those
people who always who thinks they're up with the play
and then somebody else says they're watching. They're right on
past that, because like I'm working my way through.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
Right, okay, but yeah, you're not to play given, I'm
sorry if you're working even I was two years late
to teed Less, So if you're working through ted Less
so now then I'm afraid that we can probably safely
say you're not up with a play.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. I realized that. No, I
will now you've said it, I will have a little squiz.
It's stunning Ado Lessons.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
It is just it is. Yeah, I'm not I'm not
hamming it up one iota, and I cannot remember being
as moved by a TV show, certainly in recent years.
So if you have a chance, it's only four episodes
and they're only about forty five minutes or an hour each,
so very much. It's on Netflix.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
What is it?
Speaker 2 (02:00):
It's on Netflix, But you need to I'll tell you this.
Here's my recommendation. If you're going to watch it, make
sure you save half an hour afterwards. Don't do it
as the very last thing you do before you go
to sleep. No, because I honestly, if you can go
and read a book or something afterwards, just to take
your mind off it for a bit, not because it's
you know, a horror or anything like that and really
(02:22):
really gory or graphic, just because it's really affecting and
you were sitting there like I was just kind of stewing,
you know. Anyway, speaking of a lessons, your daughter is
looking at buying a new car.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
Yeah, I've been looking for a little hatchback for Tommy.
Of course, in the back of my mind are those
dramatic ads on TV about the safety ratings on cars.
My brother was killed in a car crash when he
was exactly the same age as Tommy. So I didn't
want to buy an unsafe car. My wife said, only
buying the car up to you, but it must have
(02:55):
a good safety rating. I was looking at hatchbacks around
the ten thousand dollars mark, and the dealer I know
put me onto a twenty eleven Suzuki Swift Imple for
eight grand I remembered for a small car that Suzuki
Swifts had a pretty good reputation for safety. I was
about to buy it, but when I put the cars
(03:16):
regio into the government's safety ratings Right Cars, the car
got just three stars out of five for general safety,
which was considered marginal, and just one star out of
five for driver safety driver safety meaning very poor. This
surprised me. I went online and found the Automobile Association's
(03:39):
review of the twenty eleven Suzuki Swift when it was
published when the car came into the country. It said fun,
safe and affordable. The two thy and eleven Suzuki Swift
notably exceeded the thresholds for a coveted five star Euro
end cap safety rating. So how come, I asked myself,
(04:02):
According to the same ratings, it's so unsafe now, But
I thought for my daughter's sake, I'd take no risks
from buy a newer car. For eleven thousand, I found
a great little two thousand and fifty Suzuki Swift, New Zealand,
new new tires, seven air bags, Bluetooth, et cetera. Again,
(04:22):
I checked at safety ratings. It was the same as
the two thousand and eleven car. Marginal for general safety,
very poor for driver safety, and I'm thinking what's going on.
Eleven grands a lot of money for kids first car.
It's what a lot of parents spend on their own cars.
(04:44):
I'm told by the dealers that has more safety innovations
come out in brand new cars, the safety ratings for
older models drop and drop. It's not like those older
cars are getting any less safe. It's about how they
measure against brand new cars on the market with innovations
like bicycle detectors that we're getting this year. If this
(05:07):
is so, I reckon that the safety ratings are a
bit misleading. Ten year old cars that have been looked
after are, in my opinion, not unsafe. They're just less
safe than new cars. People shouldn't be put off buying them.
There's a world of difference between the ten year old
car I've now found from a daughter and the ridiculous
(05:29):
cardboard car featured in the safety ratings. AD.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Yeah, it's a really really interesting point and something I've
experienced recently too, because we upgraded from the single car
we have, which is a Toyota Corolla Hatchback, and we
bought a new, well a newer, still secondhand Toyota Corolla Hatchback,
but yes, very very glamorous. But here's the thing. We
(05:55):
had a five star end cap rating. But I realized,
and the good thing was that the newer car did
have more earbags and that kind of thing. But I
realized that that some of the reason it had the
new or had had the full safety rating was because
it has things like lane departure warning, so it beeps
at you it's going to lane departure. It has like
an automatic break function if you're getting close to things,
(06:16):
and it has lots of things that beep at you.
But of course, after driving it for a month, we
actually found that some of those things that were beeping
at us actually probably made us less safe, because you know,
like if you're just going around a car in the
middle of the road that's turning or something, and all
of a sudden, the car kind of lurches and screams
at you when you're not expecting it, it can be
quite unsettling. So I ended up actually turning off some
(06:38):
of those safety I measures, Yeah, go into the system
and turn it off in order to make us safer.
And it was like, ah, I think we might be
prioritizing the wrong thing here, you know.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
Yeah, it's interesting thing I just think, Yeah, I just
think there's a better way of explaining what those safety
ratings are. It doesn't mean to say in my opinion,
and I don't I'm no expert, obviously. Yeah, in my opinion,
it doesn't mean to say you're not safe. It means
that newer cars had have greater safety. Yeah, but of
(07:08):
course you can't afford those cars, so you have to
buy the older car, particularly if you're buying the family members.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (07:15):
I mean you can't afford to buy new cats of
the old family. You can't afford to buy it for yourself.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
And yeah, I mean the other the other thing I
think about too, is that, you know, is the safety
of other people. So so you know, of course there's
you as the driver want to be safe and you
want your passengers to be safe. But you know, I
look at some of the monstrously large vehicles around the
place and I'm like, man, this is not making pedestrians
any safer.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
No, hell yeah, yeah, no, anyway, that's right.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Hey, thank you for that, Kevin. That's really interesting. And yeah,
I hope that Tommy appreciates your your expertise on on
that front. Thank you for your feedback as well. Jack
really enjoyed Kevin's comments this morning. He's totally right regarding
the safety ratings. It's a funny old thing. Ninety two
ninety two. If you want to send us some message
this morning, Jacket Newspook SAIDB dot co dot nz is
(08:04):
the email address for.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
More Fromaturday Morning with Jack Tame. Listen live to news
Talks at B from nine am Saturday, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio
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