Car safety ratings and road fatalities

We all know there are lots of things NZers can do to reduce the road toll: slow down, stop trying ridiculous passing, stop drinking and driving, etc, but what if we were a little more stringent from the other angle? i.e. only allowing the importation of cars with at least a yellow safety rating?

http://www.aa.co.nz/motoringimg/2005_Used_Car_Safety_Ratings_brochure..pdf

What are the current safety laws? (maybe they already do this?)

I reckon like being licienced for automatics, people just need proper driver training before being passed on their liciences (while some of the examples you stated are more habit based than skill based)...

For starters ... All cars should have at least ABS. Traction control and dynamic stability control would be good too .. but I think for the last two we are a we way away from cars on the road having these things as standard.

Other things to think about are all round airbags and proper side intrusion beams

Sweet mine got a full green bar

Errr... what about cars like the Lotus Elise.... I'm sure this would be fun with all these

The thing is, driver aids are all very well for idiots whio cann't drive, but they detract from those who can drive well.... putting driver aids in all cars is the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff thing, if we taught people how to drive properly in the first place then cars wouldn't need so many of these things.

limiting the CC or HP rating that someone can drive unless they pass some proper tests.

like.. no-one under 21 able to drive anything over 2000cc and/or turboed/supercharged.

I'm throwing that one out there... I'd hate to see me when I had got my restricted blatting around in my current ride.