The global safety watchdog, Global NCAP, on Tuesday announced that it has reached the 50 model milestone for cars tested in the Indian market with the announcement of the programme’s new crash results.
According to the press release, the cars included in this latest phase of the #SaferCarsforIndia campaign are the Nissan Magnite, Renault Kiger, Honda Jazz and the Honda City (Fourth Gen).
Alejandro Ferras, Global NCAP Secretary-General, said, “This is an important milestone moment for our crash testing in India, with fifty models tested to date. There has been significant progress on vehicle safety design since we began our tests in 2014 but, as we see from our latest results, there is still more to be done to achieve the high safety standards that consumers in India rightly demand.”
“It has been encouraging to see some leading Indian manufacturers respond so well to the #SaferCarsforIndia challenge, but also rather disappointing that major global brands fall short on safety in India whilst comfortably exceeding these requirements in other global markets,” he added.
David Ward, President, Towards Zero Foundation, said, “As we pass the #SaferCarsforIndia fifty test milestone, it’s important to recognise the progress that has been made. For some Indian manufacturers this has become a must have validation of their commitment to safety. Together with the introduction of our new assessment protocols in July this year, the combination of regulatory push and market pull will continue to help shape a market for safety in India.”
The agency further said that for the #SaferCarsForIndia project, it currently tests frontal crash protection for occupants only. However, further side-impact, ESC and pedestrian protection assessments will form part of Global NCAP’s updated assessment protocols in India as from July 2022, it added.
Nissan Magnite
Tested in the base XE trim level fitted with two front airbags and ABS, the Maginite scored four stars for adult and two for child occupant protection in the crash test.
During the assessment, the model demonstrated a stable structure and limited protection to the driver’s chest, according to the agency. Surprisingly, the model is still sold with a lap belt in the rear centre seat rather than three-point belts, and without ISOFIX anchorages for Child Restraint Systems (CRS), it added.
Renault Kiger
Renault Kiger, which shares Magnite’s platform, was tested in its base RXE trim with two frontal airbags and ABS. It achieved four stars for adult and two stars for child occupant protection.
Global NCAP found that it showed an unstable structure and marginal protection to the driver’s chest during the assessment.
Honda Jazz
The premium hatch from the Japanese carmaker Honda was also tested in its base variant with two frontal airbags and ABS, granting it a four stars rating for adult and child occupant protection.
The release from the agency stated that during the assessment, it showed a stable structure. It does not have ISOFIX anchorages, and for this reason, the CRS was tested using adult seatbelts. Honda decided to install both child dummies in a rearward-facing position following global best practice, the release added.
Honda City (Fourth Gen)
The fourth-gen Honda City was evaluated in the previous generation model’s base form, which included two frontal airbags, ISOFIX anchorages, and ABS. The vehicle received a four-star rating for both adult and child occupant protection.
The assessment showed an unstable structure and footwell area, good child occupant protection thanks to the ISOFIX anchorages and the rearward facing position of one of the child dummies, the agency added.