You may not know it, but China has its own New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) and they even go as far as testing import models, and they are quite serious in their tests. Not sure if they spend the same effort testing the Chinese cars as well, but in any case, they just awarded the new Chevy Malibu with five stars.

The 2013 Malibu can now add this certificate to its 5-Star Overall Vehicle Score from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and a 2013 Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute, as and other safety accolades it’s won in Europe, South Korea and Australia. The reason the car is so safe is partly because of its clever steel construction, and partly due to the sheer number of standard safety features.

The body of the Malibu and its passenger cell feature ultra-high-strength steels, full-length frame rails, a reinforced safety cage and impact-absorbing crush zones. They are complemented with Dual-stage driver and front passenger air bags, Pelvic/thorax side-impact air bags for all outboard occupants, front and rear, Driver and passenger knee air bags, and Roof rail air bags with rollover protection.

Fully-loaded models can also be specified with second-row head/thorax side-impact air bags, lane departure warning system with forward collision alert, and rearview camera system.