The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) has just released details of its latest round of safety ratings and Volkswagen's Polo, and the Lexus CT200h hybrid and IS sedan have come out with maximum five-star gongs.
All have previously held five-star ratings: The Polo since 2010, the Lexus CT200h since it was released locally in 2011 and the IS sedan since 2007.
But although all the vehicles scored the highest possible overall ratings, ANCAP says the actual safety standards across the entire range of variants weren't the same.
For example basic versions of the Volkswagen Polo, Lexus CT200h and IS were not available with a feature that is currently being campaigned as a vital safety feature by the Road Traffic Authority: Autonomous emergency braking. This system is able to step in and stop a vehicle that is unwittingly headed for a collision – without any input from the driver.
The same criticism applies to the non-availability, in base models, of radar-assisted adaptive cruise control that automatically maintains a set distance from a vehicle travelling ahead.
Only the more expensive versions of the Volkswagen and Lexus five-star cars offer the features.
ANCAP chairman Mr. Lauchlan McIntosh urged car-makers to make such safety features standard on all versions. "Each of these models offer a respectable range of safety assist technologies, however, as with a number of other vehicles we've tested recently, we are continuing to see the majority of these important technologies either being withheld from base variants or not available at all.
"If we are to see a significant drop in the number of lives lost on our roads, these technologies need to be provided to all. Safety should not be seen as luxury or added extra," added Mr McIntosh.
It's the same argument that has brought the crash safety testing authority into conflict with Nissan recently.