What the latest global crash tests say about Indian cars
NEW DELHI : Are cars safe in India? Some of them are, going by past crash test results, but some continue to fall short of safety standards under global crash test protocols. The latest round of test results from Global New Car Assessment Programme (GNCAP) has found serious safety shortcomings in some car models, prompting calls for industry-wide action to prioritize occupant and vehicle safety.
The GNCAP test report, released on Tuesday, announced crash test results for two models of Kia Carens, Honda Amaze and Mahindra's Bolero Neo. The Honda Amaze and Mahindra Bolero Neo disappointed with dismal safety ratings of two stars and one star, respectively, for adult occupant safety, and zero and one star, respectively, for child occupant safety.
Kia's Carens showed improvement in a retest, achieving three stars for adult safety and an impressive five stars for child occupants. However, concerns linger over the Carens' driver neck performance despite standard inclusion of six airbags, a release by the GNCAP said.
Despite initiatives like GNCAP and the country's own crash-test programme Bharat New Car Assessment Program (BNCAP), some car manufacturers have fallen short in standardizing critical safety features, raising concerns about the preservation of human life on Indian roads. The BNCAP, an indigenous programme developed by the Indian government in collaboration with its testing agencies and various other stakeholders, was launch last August, and is a voluntary testing program.
BNCAP protocols are defined along the lines of the GNCAP, with the advantage that the cars can be tested by Indian agencies within the country, and at lower cost. Cars such as Tata Harrier and Safari secured five stars in BNCAP on both adult and
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