All-New Dodge Dart Named IIHS Top Safety Pick

AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Oct. 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

• Scored maximum possible rating in every IIHS Top Safety Pick test
• More than 60 available safety and security features, including | 10 standard-equipment air bags – unsurpassed in the Dart's segment
• 68-percent high-strength-steel ratio among highest in industry
• 12th Chrysler Group vehicle to earn 2012 Top Safety Pick designation

The all-new Dodge Dart, with its 10 standard-equipment air bags and one of the auto industry's highest content-ratios of high-strength steel, has been named a 2012 Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The first product born of Chrysler Group LLC's alliance with Fiat S.p.A. recorded the maximum possible rating in each of the four crash tests used by the IIHS to evaluate occupant protection, the primary attribute of a Top Safety Pick. The 2013 Dart achieved a score of "good" in tests that simulate rollover, rear-, side- and moderate-overlap frontal-impacts.

The IIHS rating scale comprises grades of good, acceptable, marginal and poor.

"We had high expectations for the Dart and our engineers delivered," says Reid Bigland, Dodge-brand President and CEO and Head of U.S. Sales. "Since its launch, the 2013 Dodge Dart has consistently outperformed in the area of fuel efficiency, technology, value for the money and now safety. It is truly a groundbreaking new car."

Top Safety Pick is the highest safety honor bestowed by the IIHS. "Winners afford buyers the best overall protection in four of the most common kinds of crashes, and help them avoid crashes altogether with electronic stability control," says IIHS President Adrian Lund.

Chrysler Group's new compact sedan was engineered with a class-leading total of safety and security features -- more than 60 -- to ensure peace of mind. The Dart's safety story starts with a solid structure: high-strength-steel comprises 68 percent of the car's body, one of the highest ratios in the industry.

Ten standard-equipment, advanced-design air bags further improve occupant protection. Every Dodge Dart comes equipped with:

• Dual-stage, adaptive, venting air bags for the driver and front-seat passenger,
• Front-seat-mounted pelvic and thorax air bags for driver and passenger,
• Two rear-seat-mounted pelvic air bags,
• Knee air bags for driver and front-seat passenger,
• Two curtain air bags designed to protect front and rear passengers on both sides of the car

Equally important to Dart customers are its technologies that deliver accident-avoidance capability, such as:

• Electronic stability control (ESC)
• Electronic roll mitigation
• Traction control
• Standard four-wheel, four-channel anti-lock disc brakes
• Electronic brake-force distribution
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Rear cross-path detection

The Dart joins 11 Chrysler Group vehicles previously awarded an IIHS Top Safety Pick designation for 2012. They are: the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango SUVs; Dodge Journey and Jeep Patriot cross/utility vehicles; Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country minivans; Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 full-size sedans; Dodge Avenger and Chrysler 200 mid-size sedans; and the Fiat 500 minicar.

The 2012 Top Safety Pick is the most recent accolade aimed at the Dart. Others include:

• Top 10 Cars of the 2012 North American International Auto Show (Kelley Blue Book)
• Editors' Choice Award/Most Significant Vehicle at 2012 NAIAS (Autoweek)
• The 25 Most Anticipated Cars of 2012 (Complex Media)
• Seven Hottest New Cars at the 2012 NAIAS (Vanity Fair Magazine)
• Eight Great American Cars to Spend a Tax Refund On (AutoTrader.com)
• Most Significant Vehicle at Atlanta International Auto Show (Greater Atlanta Automotive Media Assn.)
• Ward's 10 Best Interiors for 2012 (WardsAuto.com)
• Compact Car of Texas (Texas Auto Writers Assn.)
• Best Value (Texas Auto Writers Assn.)
• Best New Feature -- Thin Film Transistor (TFT) Display (Texas Auto Writers Assn.)
• 10 Coolest Cars Under $18,000 (Consumer Guide Automotive)
• 10 Coolest Cars Under $18,000 (Kbb.com)
• Top 10 New Cars for 2013 (Total Car Score)
• Most Important New Cars for 2013 List (Washington Post)

About Dodge
For nearly 100 years, Dodge has defined passionate and innovative vehicles that stand apart in performance and in style. Building upon its rich heritage of muscle cars, racing technology and ingenious engineering, Dodge offers a full-line of cars, crossovers, minivans and SUVs built for top performance – from power off the line and handling in the corners, to high-quality vehicles that deliver unmatched versatility and excellent fuel efficiency. Only Dodge offers such innovative functionality combined with class-leading performance, exceptional value and distinctive design. With the all-new 2013 Dodge Dart, the all-new Dodge Charger paired with the ZF eight-speed transmission that achieves a class-leading 31 miles per gallon on the highway, the new Durango and the significantly revamped Grand Caravan – inventor of the minivan – Journey, Avenger and iconic Challenger, Dodge now has one of the freshest dealer showrooms in the United States.

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About Chrysler Group LLC
Chrysler Group LLC, formed in 2009 from a global strategic alliance with Fiat S.p.A., produces Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, SRT, Fiat and Mopar vehicles and products. With the resources, technology and worldwide distribution network required to compete on a global scale, the alliance builds on Chrysler Group's culture of innovation, first established by Walter P. Chrysler in 1925, and Fiat's complementary technology that dates back to its founding in 1899.

Headquartered in Auburn Hills, Mich., Chrysler Group's product lineup features some of the world's most recognizable vehicles, including the Chrysler 300, Jeep Wrangler, Dodge Challenger and Ram 1500. Fiat contributes world-class technology, platforms and powertrains for small- and medium-size cars, allowing Chrysler Group to offer an expanded product line including environmentally friendly vehicles.

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Corporate website: http://www.chryslergroupllc.com

About the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

The IIHS is a nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing deaths, injuries and property damage that result from crashes on the nation's roads. Its research focuses on three main areas: human factors, or preventing crashes by changing driver behavior; vehicle factors, or reducing deaths and injuries by improving vehicle design; and environmental factors, or changing roadway design, signs and signals to reduce crashes.

SOURCE Chrysler Group LLC