Where to find safety reviews

Where do I find safety reviews on cars? I keep coming across sites that have everything "not rated". Does that mean the car wasn't tested that year?

Example:
http://www.safercar.gov/Vehicle+Sho...type=model&make=NISSAN&model=ARMADA&year=2011

Thanks!

There are only two agencies in the USA with the resources to crash test vehicles. The IIHS, www.iihs.org, and the NHTSA, www.safercar.gov . They produce two sets of complimentary crash test information.

As you've discovered, many vehicles are not tested. While most mainstream models do often get a full set of testing completed within a year or so of being on the market, many full-size SUVs and high end luxury models are never tested at all. This would be the case of the model you linked above as well.

You can try contacting these agencies. If it is on their list for the next model year of testing, they will usually tell you. Otherwise, my experience is that they do not comment on what they may test in future years.

Unfortunately, that means we just don't know how well many vehicles will perform in a crash. While most new vehicles do reasonably well in crash testing, there are still exceptions in every size category. While I wouldn't want my family in an untested sub-compact or mini car, I would have no issue with them periodically riding in an untested large vehicle.

In the past, I've purchased vehicles before they had a full set of crash test results. Sometimes even safety advocates have other criteria for vehicle selection, too;-)

Yup, as Darren said, you've basically got the IIHS and NHTSA for testing, and beyond that, it's uncharted territory. However, for the Armada, it's worth noting that the 2005-2008 model years had a driver death rate of 0 and 21 in the 4WD and 2WD trim levels respectively, which means I'd feel quite comfortable with my family in one.

I agree with both posts above. But that being said, I wouldn't buy an Armada with a 3 star rollover rating when the highest rating an SUV can get is 4. There are SUVs with 4 stars, so I'd get one of those. No one else has to share that opinion with me.

Definitely would not be one I would consider as a purchase, either, if only for the atrocious fuel economy.

Vehicles that can't manage 20 mpg on the highway are shameful these days. Many SUVs already get 20 mpg combined now, some even get 20 mpg EPA city mileage. For the same price, you could get a Nissan Pathfinder 4x4 Hybrid, which is pretty roomy for a midsize SUV. It does have a 5-star overall NHTSA rating and Good IIHS moderate frontal and side crash tests, though it is not yet fully tested by the IIHS yet.

http://carseatblog.com/22049/smooth-sailing-2013-nissan-pathfinder-kids-carseats-safety-review/