The new Mazda BT-50 has been handed a full five-star safety rating from the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme (ANCAP).

As expected, the BT-50 effectively inherits the impressive crash-test results of the Isuzu D-Max, the bakkie on which it’s based. However, due to differing front bumper, bonnet and facia designs, the safety authority conducted “supplementary testing” on the BT-50.

These additional tests, says ANCAP, revealed a “very slight increase in potential injury risk” for pedestrians and cyclists, with the BT-50 achieving 67 percent for vulnerable road-user protection (as opposed to the D-Max’s 69 percent).

Still, since it shares its platform with the D-Max, the BT-50 was handed maximum points for its protection of adult occupants in the side impact and oblique pole tests. Full points were furthermore awarded for the protection of child occupants in the frontal offset and side impact tests.

Fresh safety features introduced to the latest Australian-spec BT-50 include a centre airbag, a “junction assist” function for the autonomous emergency braking system and multi-collision braking.

As a reminder, the new BT-50 measures 5 280 mm long, 1 870 mm wide and 1 790 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3 125 mm. It is available in initial markets with a locking rear differential, low-range gearing and an 800 mm wading depth. Power comes from Isuzu’s 3,0-litre, four-cylinder turbodiesel engine, which delivers 140 kW at 3 600 r/min and 450 N.m from 1 600 to 2 600 r/min.

Original article from Car