Subaru Liberty scores five-star EuroNCAP

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By Matt Brogan | August 28th, 2009

The new 2010 Subaru Liberty, due to be launched in Australia next month, has scored a maximum possible five-star rating under strict European New Car Assessment Program (EuroNCAP) safety testing.

This year EuroNCAP introduced a stringent new combined safety performance test that evaluates four criteria: adult occupant protection, child occupant protection, pedestrian protection and safety assist – all of which the new Liberty passed with flying colours.
Local testing results of Australian specification Liberty and Outback, conducted by the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP), are due to be announced in the near future.

Currently, the entire Subaru range shares a five-star ANCAP rating for occupant safety.

http://www.formalcars.com.au/index UrbanGTB

Something that ugly gotta be safe!
Jon Leong

It has already arrived the Brisbane showrooms. not sure about other places. I’ve seen it and sat in it…
http://www.caradvice.com.au OSU811

ive heard a rumour, its the first car to achieve MAX points 14/14 I think for side impact test!! in ancap testing!
SC

Subaru are starting to punch out some pretty ugly cars lately.This thing looks like an epica,and thats not a good thing.
http://skyline The Salesman

It’s safe because people swerve to avoid being hit with the ugly stick. I don’t know what Subaru’s design philosophy is. Just about everyone else is coming up with “family” looks and corporate grills. Looks like the boys and girls at Subaru took a 1989 Citroen, rolled the guards and stuck a new grill on. My fridge looks better.
Feducia

SC – I agree. Looks like they tried to copy the Epica styling. I am usually a Suby fan, but this model is very disappointing visually.
MACCA19

its one thing to look at a picture and another to see it in real life- it grew on me.
I personally love the new liberty and WOW does the 3.6L go!
Tack

The Salesman> My fridge looks better.

Your fridge? Oh yha~ KIA SOUL !!!

Well, this new model is not good looking.
Especially front end.
But not ugly like SSANGYONG ACTYON !!!
(That’s ugliest car I have ever seen in my real life.)
As a current Liberty owner, it’s shame.
At USA and Japan most reviewer wrote same thing, but they wrote inside is so much improvement.
Engine, transmission, chassis, interior size and drive ability.
Sounds very good car, but yes it’s not pretty.
davie

Previous shape was very harmonious although the facelift 2 years ago started the downward trend…
http://www.caradvice.com.au OSU811

you are right MACCA the styling does really grow on you the more you look at it in real life, its quite well styled, and the interior is spot on!!! great quality dash/layout and heaps of room and features.. plus drivetrains are top notch stuff!!
Pops

We should run a sweepstake for how many months until Subaru have to bring forward their facelift on this abomination.

My guess is 18 months ala the bug eyed Impreza…..
Howie-R31

No real suprise that any new subaru receives a 5 star rating is it? Been one of the safest companies in their price bracket/range for many years
zahmad

I believe they might sell more just by replacing the front with the MY09/current headlights…
binladen

So ugly! The only thing it looks nicer than is Mahindra!
Tom

I know its the trendy thing these days to try and be more over the top than the last guy in describing Subaru’s ‘ugliness’, but this car in the metal definitely does grow on you. And as Impreza’s sales show, aesthetics is no barrier to sales.
Collossal Squid

I agree with Tom, and the interior should be able to compensate for its ungainly exterior.
FlameThrower

I’m on my second Liberty, upgraded from MY00 RX to MY08 Heritage. In the pictures the car looks much better in darker colurs, although most of these have been of the GT. So how the base model would look in real life is another question. This Liberty has gone with Mazda6, Honda Euro with the big flared guard look. Rear end of this is weakest point though. But having said all of that at least it looks better than to showmodel that was around earlier! Anyway i’ve got an invite to local Subaru dealer for preview next week…
Devil’s Advocate

I just hope that the quality of the interior platics don’t follow the trend of the other more recent Subaru models. Read Impreza and Tribeca with their hard, scratch prone plastics that wouldn’t be out of place in a $15,990 Kia/GM Daewoo etc. It is a shame though as the quality of the fit is first class.
Pops

Flamethrower: Yes, but at least Honda has filled the wheel arches of the euro with some 235mm wide, 18″ wheels (in luxo spec at least).

This liberty looks like its running 16s. I bet even the GT / Spec B models will run skinny tyres that will struggle to fill those tanksized wheel arches….
http://Caradvice.com.au Baddass

The styling is growing on me, but I would still look at a prev model GT Spec B STI.
Alex

I’ve also seen them – they’re in Adelaide as well. I still think it’s ugly but the hardest thing to get over is that I saw one next to the current model and the new one looks far more dated.
Safety is a very important thing, but almost everybody gets high safety ratings these days so that’s no more a selling point than it is for any other far better looking cars.
If you want a well priced AWD sedan, just wait a year and get a Kizashi.
ssbob

Wouldn’t care if it was so fugly if it went well(the wife would have it, real men only drive RWD), but all the AWD in the world won’t make be by a friggin CVT.

Should’ve died a death with DAF.
Frenchie

I think ANCAP need to up the ante. Start testing and showing results for rear passenger protection.

Maybe start testing the vehicles at 80Km/h test to see how they stand up at that collisional speed.

They need to show more information on how a vehicle will hold up in a collision, rather than just saying ooh they got side and curtain airbags 5 star rating.
Simon

Ugly……………….but safe.
observer

I’ve already checked them out at my local dealer and both the Liberty/Outback definately looks better in the flesh.

All those sceptics who bagged the bland look of the Impreza and how sales would tank are wrong. The Impreza has never sold so strong as in this latest iteration and Subaru continues to buck global downturn in sales with posative gains in all major markets (North America,USA, Europe, and Oz)

So this this newest release will only bolster than continued sales followed up with a Turbo Diesel and the Exiga.

Sales figures speak for themselves!!!
realcars

What impresses me most with Subaru is that their cars have been earning five star results for years.

Now all they have to do is put the ugly stick away and catch up in terms of engine/trans development although “free” AWD compensates to a degree.
realcars

I also dislike CVT,
Martin

The new KIA Sorento also scored a 5-star EuroNCAP rating.
Shak

Hey they say this comes out next month, but my local Subie dealer has loads of them on display.
Bogan

Shak, wakey wakey, it’s end of Aug and next month is just next week.

On this latest Subaru effort. They have always been good engineered cars, it’s just that the stylist has gone on holidays. That’s a shame and opportunity lost.
bob

OSU811, the Cruze got a perfect Side Impact test score before the Liberty. Sorry to burst your bubble.
Marcus

For years Subaru have justifiably promoted their cars as having high levels of safety engineering. Each new generation was safer and scored higher in the ANCAP ratings than the previous one. So why does the 2010 Liberty gain a 34.8 score when the previous generation with 1 less airbag got 35.52! It performs worse in the offset crash than the Impreza! 5 stars it still is, but Subaru must be disappointed it hasn’t improved on older models score.
andre

Once again…I’m curious as to whether this Subaru (as a wagon) will make you decide between curtain airbags or a cargo barrier as was the case with the last 5-star rated generation of Liberty and Outback wagons….. or, as for the Tribeca even.
Really, like in most Euros this should not be a decision one has to make. According to Subaru their curtain airbags were not compatible with cargo barriers.

I find that unacceptable and, from my point of view, doesn’t paint a wholistic approach to building a safe car but instead working toward the ANCAP et al criteria and meeting those as well as possible.
andre

JUST ADDING TO MY LAST FEW WORDS….

A small point to some people but I carry a lot of things in the car and for that reason wouldn’t consider a car without cargo barriers (and curtain airbags). Furthermore, no rear foglight is available on Australian delivered models, which also save lives when used correctly and not for fashion purposes (like most Subaru front foglights).
blitzkrieg

its starting to grow on me
Bret

I had a look at one in the metal yesterday (Adelaide Show), and anyone questioning the looks from the photos will be real dissapointed, beacause they look strikingly good in real life, the Outback too.

There goes all of the keyboard warrior Subaru haters crdability.

BTW,
- FPV Falcon GS build No 0005 was there looking damn sweet as well.
- Didn’t even notice the “new” Camry
- i30 was a dissapointment (I should say sorry to the dealer who had the car there for breaking the rear grab handle – just grabbed it to swing out and it pulled right down as it’s just fixed to the roof lining no the structure)
nicks

this would have to be the beginning of the end for subaru.saw the car in the showroom the other day you simply cant compare it to a mazda6 or the honda euro.drivetrain isnt bulletproof as once thought just replaced head gaskets on 2.5 liberty with 110000 klms very poor $3600 never again will i buy a subaru

Watto

nicks, I agree, in the metal, the new Liberty certenly does look to be a class obove the the Mazda 6 and makes the Honda blend into the background like a Camry.

Rick E

One more query if not a Liberty Wagon then what other wagon options are worth considering in Australia? Have looked at Skoda – small,Ford Mondeo – small and Holden Sportswagon.