Tata Punch scores 5 star, Maruti S-Presso gets zero

New Delhi: AS automakers in India up their efforts on vehicular safety, with several made-in-India cars scoring an impressive performance in the Global NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) crash tests. Tata Punch, claiming the title of Safest Car in India, received a 5-star rating for adult occupant protection and 4-stars for child occupant protection in the Global NCAP crash test.

The crash simulation for Tata Punch was tested at a 64 kms/hour speed wherein it scored 16.45 points out of a total of 17 points for adult occupant safety whereas for child occupant protection, it earned 40.89 points out of a total of 49 points.

Alejandro Furas, Secretary General of Global NCAP said, "Tata has once again achieved a top safety rating for adult protection and four stars for children in a new and popular model category. This voluntary test result confirms the direction of Tata's journey towards safer cars for India. Our test procedures demonstrate Tata's progress in becoming one of the safety leaders in the Indian market with our current protocols. As the protocols evolve to include electronic stability control (ESC), side impact head protection and pedestrian protection, we would encourage Tata to maintain this leadership position."

Under the #SaferCarsForIndia campaign, Global NCAP has crash-tested around 30 made-in-India cars till October this year. Other than Tata Punch, Mahindra XUV300 also scored a 5-star rating on adult occupancy safety with 16.42 points and 4-star rating on child occupant protection with a 37.44 score.

The other variants of Tata including Tata Altroz and Tata Nexon scored an impressive 5-star rating on adult occupancy safety with score of 16.13 points and 16.06 points respectively. However, both the cars scored a 3-star rating on child occupant protection.

Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV) Mahindra Marazzo bagged a 4-star safety rating in the Global NCAP crash test for adult occupant protection with a total score of 12.85 points out of a total of 17 points and a 2-star rating for child occupant protection with a total score of 22.22 points.

Despite securing a 4-star rating on both adult occupancy safety and child occupant protection, Tata Tigor Electric Vehicles' bodyshell integrity, however, was rated unstable by Global NCAP. According to the fact sheet report, for the adult occupant protection category, "the bodyshell was rated as unstable and it was not capable of withstanding further loadings. Footwell area was rated as unstable."

Renault TRIBER, a five door MPV, was also deemed unstable for bodyshell integrity, as the car's bodyshell was rated as unstable and not capable of withstanding further loadings. With a 4-star adult occupant safety, the footwell area was rated as unstable as well for the vehicle. Although, most Indian vehicles scored an impressive 4-star rating on adult occupant safety, Global NCAP has noted that under safety equipment segment, almost no tested cars have headbags to protect side body, head side and driver knees.

Indo-Japanese car brand Suzuki MARUTI, has been one of the worst performing cars, wherein WAGONR series scored 2-star rating with a score of 6.93 out of 17 on adult occupant safety and 2 star rating with a score of 16.33 out of 49 on child occupant protection. The report card mentions that upon the crash testing, driver and passenger's chest showed weak protection. Another disappointing report card was of Maruti Suzuki S-Presso which scored zero stars on Global NCAP's new round of crash tests.

Under adult occupant safety, Global NCAP report card for Maruti Suzuki S-PRESSO stated, "Driver's neck showed adequate protection and passenger's neck showed poor protection which explains the zero stars. Driver's chest showed poor protection and passenger's chest showed weak protection…. The bodyshell was rated as unstable and it was not capable of withstanding further loadings. Footwell area was rated as unstable... All of the above explained the zero stars for adult occupant protection."

Expressing disappointment over the poor performance of Suzuki Maruit S-Presso, the Secretary General of Global NCAP said, "It is very disappointing that Maruti Suzuki, the manufacturer with the largest share of the Indian market, offers such low safety performance for Indian consumers. Domestic manufacturers like Mahindra and Tata have demonstrated high levels of safety and protection for their customers, both achieving five-star performance. Surely it's time for Maruti Suzuki to demonstrate this commitment to safety for its customers?"

David Ward, President of the Towards Zero Foundation added, "There is no place for zero rated cars in the Indian market. It remains a great disappointment that an important manufacturer like Maruti Suzuki does not recognise this."