The Fiat Croma has been awarded the prestigious Euro NCAP five-star rating, that puts it at the top of the class where safety is concerned. This important achievement, which follows that of the Grande Punto, Bravo and 500, confirms the importance that Fiat Group Automobiles attributes to all aspects related to the protection of the driver and passengers. In the case of the Fiat Croma, the work done has given excellent results.

To achieve it, the engineers analysed all possible types of accident: head-on and side-on impact, overturning, nose-to-tail and fire. They took into account the different speeds at which a crash may occur, the different types of obstacle and the protection of occupants with very different physical characteristics.

It entailed 18,000 hours of calculation, 120 crash tests, 100 crash simulations on a HyGe sled, 200 tests on components and subsystems, 10 new types of performance specifications and test procedures, and 8 co-design suppliers with specific structures for passive safety (2 of whom were involved exclusively in the design and development of the safety devices).

Detailed analysis of all these parameters produced a number of technical solutions that make the Fiat Croma one of the safest cars on the market. The new model incorporates a large number of sophisticated devices as standard equipment, starting with those dedicated to passive safety: 2 dual stage front airbags, 2 front side airbags, 2 curtain bags and a driver’s side knee-bag (rear side airbags are available on request). Front Seat belts with pre-tensioners and load limiters are standard equipment, as is an anti-whiplash device on the front head restraints. Three-point Isofix anchorage points on the rear side seats anchor child seats safely.

The new car performs predictably at all times, pardoning any mistakes by the driver and getting him out of any critical situations without difficulty. In addition to an superb braking system, the Fiat Croma also incorporates a number of electronic devices that control the car’s dynamic behaviour, from braking to traction. These include ABS with EBD (Electronic Brake force Distribution) and, above all, ESP (Electronic Stability Program), the system that intervenes when conditions are close to the limit, and the car’s very stability is at risk, helping the driver to control the vehicle.

ESP is standard equipment throughout the Nuova Croma range, and includes the following supplementary systems: ASR (Anti Slip Regulation), which limits drive wheel slip when surface grip is poor; MSR (Motor Schleppmoment Regelung), which cuts in if the driver changes down too abruptly, to return torque to the engine and prevent excessive dragging of the drive wheels; HBA (Hydraulic Brake Assistance), the electro-hydraulic device that automatically intervenes during panic braking; and finally the Hill-holder that helps the driver on hill starts.

All versions in the range are fitted with disc brakes all round (ventilated at the front, and at the rear on versions with the 1.9 Multijet 16v and 2.4 Multijet 20v engines), which guarantee excellent braking distances: from 36.2 to 36.9 metres depending on the version (from 100 km/h).