Back in the day having the biggest and most meanest-looking car was what mattered. Safety wasn't a very big priority, however, which is probably why a lot of road accidents did not end too well for the occupants. Fast forward to the present and car manufacturers are now constantly working on making their cars as safe as possible while still retaining the sleek and sporty looks. Seat belts and airbags are pretty much mandatory in cars all over the world now and instead of adding more material at the front and back, automobile manufacturers have figured out the science behind crumple zones, a structural design of the car that can absorb energy upon impact and keep the occupants safe.

Back in the day having the biggest and most meanest-looking car was what mattered. Safety wasn't a very big priority, however, which is probably why a lot of road accidents did not end too well for the occupants. Fast forward to the present and car manufacturers are now constantly working on making their cars as safe as possible while still retaining the sleek and sporty looks. Seat belts and airbags are pretty much mandatory in cars all over the world now and instead of adding more material at the front and back, automobile manufacturers have figured out the science behind crumple zones, a structural design of the car that can absorb energy upon impact and keep the occupants safe.

Still, even now some cars are more likely to keep their driver and the occupants safe than others. Other more notorious cars such as the Ford Pinto have now become case studies about car safety regulations. If you're on the lookout for a new car or even an old one, one of the first things you should do is check the safety ratings to make sure that vehicle has all the necessary options for occupant safety. We set out and did some research of our own and came up with a list of 20 cars that no one should drive if they want to live. Keep in mind that these cars have either been rated badly by the IIHS (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) or are considered unsafe after general consensus by users.

20
KIA RIO

In a report by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) the Kia Rio was on the first rank as the deadliest car for having a driver fatality rate of 149 per million registrations.

By the time the 2017 reports from IIHS were released, they had improved and brought the previous figures down to 102 fatalities per million registrations which is still considerably high and ranked them at second on the list.

A compilation of fatality tolls from vehicles modeled from 2009-2012 the Rio had a count of 149 which is huge and thus got it the first spot on the list. Results from crash tests done on the Rio by the IIHS show that the Rio had vulnerabilities in the leg and head area causing it to be unsafe.

Market spoiling thread.

19
DELOREAN DMC 12
Via supercars.net
It became famous for its role in the “Back to the Future” movie where Marty McFly used it to visit the year 2015. Thirty thousand units of the car were planned to be made however only 9200 were produced and not many were according to the ideas of John Z DeLorean. The main concern other than the drive was the safety, which was the all the worse due to its design. The Gull-wing doors in a crash could be jammed, and the windows were small too which meant no escape for the passengers in case of a crash. There was no safety release included either which makes it one of the deadliest cars ever.

18
HYUNDAI PONY

The Pony was really popular in North America back in the 1980s. It sold half a million cars in just a span of two years from 1984 to 1985. There were two reasons behind this, firstly being that it was the first mass-produced car from South Korea and secondly the low price tag.

However, the Pony was really deadly and prone to accidents.

The Pony was very prone to rust, and the point breaker ignition both made sure the car would not run as brand new more than a few thousand miles. The main issue here was the old technology that used the cheap raw materials to construct the body offering very little protection during accidents.

17
GEELY CK

The Geely CK is a Chinese produced car and it only sells in a few markets namely South America, Russia and the country of origin China of course. The availability of the car on a few markets are however not by choice of the manufacturer, but actually, because the car could not meet standards. Due to this, authorities from the US and most European countries have not passed it as tests have shown the body of the car to be prone to completely collapsing when it meets with an accident. The second issue was that it had no airbags which is a basic safety standard introduced in almost all cars in the biggest markets.

16
AUDI 5000

Audi is one of the well known and celebrated German car manufacturers even today, but the Audi 5000 was a car produced by them which ruined their reputation.

The Audi A4 is one of the safest cars as a report from the IIHS shows zero fatalities, however, the Audi 5000 which was the predecessor to the Audi A6 is the complete opposite.

The problem was with a system on the car which was known as the idle stabilization system. The car ended up launching forward while braking which was obviously unexpected for drivers. Some estimates showed around 1000 crashes due to this problem which is massive.

15
CHEVY COLORADO

Usually people who own pickup trucks feel more safe and powerful for driving such a strong and hefty looking vehicle, however, it is the complete opposite with the Chevy Colorado. This pickup truck has a massive statistic which is 93 fatalities for every million registrations. To add to that number, most of these come under the single vehicle accidents which are even worse.

The reason for this is mainly because of the handling which is difficult for most users and power from the engine that most drivers may underestimate making the vehicle go out of control. If you are looking for a pickup truck to feel more protected, the Chevy Colorado is one to stay away from.

14
TOYOTA YARIS

Owning smaller cars and mostly hatchbacks have become a habit in most regions. Firstly they take up less garage space, consume less fuel, taxes are lower, spare parts are cheaper and they can get you through tighter spaces when in need. The Toyota Yaris is the perfect example of such cars, however, there is a downside to owning such small cars which is the dangers of meeting with an accident. The Toyota Yaris had 29 injury claims out of every 1000 units sold. The main reason behind this was that the car crumpled much easily compared to larger vehicles making the impact being felt on the inside. Sadly even advance safety technology could not even overcome this making it a really unsafe car.