Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun receive 5-star rating under new Global NCAP safety protocol

The India-spec, India-built Volkswagen Taigun and Skoda Kushaq are the first two vehicles to be tested under Global NCAP’s revised safety protocol. The two sports utility vehicles (SUVs) share the same platform and come from the same plant in Pune. They’re also the first international carmakers in this segment to receive five-star safety rating, with Tata Motors and Mahindra having been the only brands to have secured it in the past. Both scored an identical 29.64 points out of a total of 34 points on the Adult Occupant Safety front, and 42 points out of 49 on the Child Occupant Safety front.

ISOFIX mounting points, seat belt reminders and adequate chest and leg protection allowed the two SUVs to receive such a high score under the newer, more stringent testing parameters set by Global NCAP. It must be noted that during the side pole impact test, the top-end six airbag version of the vehicle was tested, while the rest used the standard dual airbag models.

According to Saul Billingsley, Executive Director of the FIA Foundation, “Global NCAP has catalysed a dramatic transformation of auto safety in India, from testing a large number of zero-star cars in 2014 to now pushing the five-star boundaries with new and more ambitious test protocols, which, as we see today, cars are achieving. Hundreds of thousands of five-star cars are now being driven on Indian roads, protecting occupants against death and serious injury.”

GNCAP’s new testing parameters

Under Global NCAP #SafercarsforIndia initiative, the not-for-profit body has devised a few new parameters which make it more difficult for a car to secure a high safety rating. In fact, for a model to secure a five-star rating, it must accrue points based on a variety of factors. Global NCAP has released a 26-page document detailing those factors. The Adult Occupation Score is allotted based on the score taken from the front Impact (16 points max) side impact, and SBR assessment (2 points).

Safety Belt reminder: A sum total of 0.5 points is appointed per seat belt reminder with a maximum point allotment of 2. This means, for a car to receive the highest rating it must have front and rear seat belt reminders.

Pole Side Impact: According to the document the manufacturer must provide a side head impact protection mechanism. This generally means a curtain airbag, but, according to the new criteria “the manufacturer is free to provide a solution other than an airbag” but has to prove its efficacy before a test can be allowed. Just what this impact protection measure is, hasn’t been specified in the document. More than 30 percent of the total production volume of a model must provide this mechanism, at least till 2026, which is when the new parameters expire. After 2026, 100 percent of the production models must provide this mechanism.

Pedestrian Protection: All models must comply with pedestrian safety protocols set by UN127, which allot points for pedestrian safety based on factors like lower bumper height, lower bumper reference line, ground reference plane, etc.

ESC: Electronic Stability Control (ESC) must be offered in 100 percent of the best-selling variant sold, based on the GTR 8 method of testing ESC for effective evaluation of steering and yaw.

Do the old ratings still apply?

Any of the previously tested cars are less likely to receive the same rating under the new protocol, as it assesses side and pedestrian impact, and not just front crash safety. It’s a lot more holistic in its approach, and therefore, a lot more conservative with the allotment of points and stars. It’s safe to assume then, that the current-gen models of previously tested cars like the XUV700 and the Tata Nexon, will not automatically qualify for the same safety rating and will need to be tested separately, under the new parameters and protocols.