Electric cars as safe as ICE cars - Skoda

Following its recent excellent performance in the European New Car Assessment Programme crash tests, Skoda has outlined some of the details that make an electric car like its Enyaq iV just as safe as a standard internal combustion engined vehicle, writes Brian Byrne.

The Enyaq received the highest score ever in the ENCAP test, and its well-protected high-voltage battery did not pose any increased risk, according to the results. Skoda says this has also been confirmed in independent studies by accident researchers and fire safety experts: battery electric vehicles have the same level of crash safety as models with conventional combustion engines.

The Enyaq's battery pack is installed in the underbody for crash safety and despite some social media commentary is very rare for an electric car to catch fire following an accident. Even a violent impact is not enough to trigger a battery fire. Only in the unlikely event of damage or deformation to the energy storage unit can the battery cells ignite. To reduce this risk, the battery pack in the Enyaq is installed in the underbody for crash safety.

Engineers also pay special attention to preventing the energy storage unit from being overloaded, with protective relays and extensive sensors which ensure that the risk of electrical or thermal overload is minimal. The drive battery’s temperature, state of charge and other parameters are constantly monitored. In addition, the high-voltage system is designed to be intrinsically safe; in the event of a defect or accident, the electrical components are disconnected from the battery within milliseconds, so that there is no voltage and no danger to the passengers.

 

Mercedes A-Class is Best in Class in crash tests

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class has been given a Best in Class award by the Euro NCAP crash test organisation, writes Brian Byrne.

The General Secretary of Euro NCAP, Michiel van Ratingen, notes that in 2018 ENCAP introduced new, tougher tests, with a particular focus on protecting particularly vulnerable road users.

"The winners of the 'Best in Class' awards clearly show that the vehicle manufacturers are striving for the highest levels of safety," he says, "and that the Euro NCAP ratings act as a catalyst for significant progress where safety is concerned."

Prof Dr Rodolfo Schöneburg, Head of Passive Safety and Vehicle Functions at Mercedes-Benz Cars, says the standardised crash tests only represent a small sample of the real-life accidents that may be encountered on the street. "For that reason, Mercedes-Benz designs all its model series using around 40 different accident constellations," he adds.

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ENCAP published Best in Class 2017 crash test list

Clockwise from top right: Volvo XC60, VW Polo, VW T-Roc, Subaru XV, VW Arteon, and Opel Crossland X.

Three Volkswagen models, two from Subaru, one Volvo and one Opel were awarded 'Best in Class 2017' ratings by the Euro NCAP crash test organisation, writes Brian Byrne.

The Volkswagens were the Arteon (Executive Class), T-Roc (Small Off-Road), and Polo (Supermini). The Subaru Impreza and its related XV were both given the rating as Small Family Cars.

The Volvo XC60 was the BIC in the Large Off-Road class, while the Opel Crossland X was given the title in the Small MPV class. (NOTE: Class designations used by ENCAP differ slightly from those generally used here.)

ENCAP says that star ratings cannot be compared directly between different categories of vehicles, so a ‘Best in Class’ is published showing which vehicles have performed better than their competitors. The comparison is made only within each calendar year so that all vehicles are assessed against the same standards.

To define the Best in Class, a calculation is made of the weighted sum of the scores in each of the four areas of assessment: Adult Occupant, Child Occupant, Pedestrian and Safety Assist. This sum is used as the basis for comparison of the vehicles. Cars qualify for ‘Best in Class’ based only on their rating with standard safety equipment. Additional ratings based on optional equipment are excluded.

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Latest crash test results

In the latest round of crash test results released by the Euro NCAP organisation, six of nine cars tested achieved a 5-star rating, writes Brian Byrne.

They are Ford's Fiesta, Jeep's Compass, Mazda's CX-5, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class Cabriolet, Opel's Grandland X and Renault's Koleos.

Opel’s all-electric Ampera-e achieved four stars, while Kia’s supermini Picanto and small-family Rio both got three stars with standard safety equipment but are rated as four and five stars respectively when tested with their optional safety packs.

The testing organisation noted that some cars demonstrated an 'apparent lack of restraint robustness' in side impact testing.

The full report is available here.

Audi, Land Rover, Toyota cars earn top crash ratings

Five-star top safety ratings have been awarded to the Audi Q5, the Land Rover Discovery and the Toyota C-HR in the latest crash test results announced by the European New Car Assessment Programme, writes Brian Byrne.

The Toyota was best for driver protection with 95pc, from the Audi with 93pc and the Land Rover with 90pc.

Citroen's C3 was awarded three four stars, while the Fiat 500 and the Ford Ka+ each received three.

All ratings were with standard safety equipment. The addition of ‘safety packs’ can improve a rating.

Volvos top in latest ENCAP, Mustang poor

In the first results for 2017, the Volvo S90 (above) and V90 achieved the top 5-star rating in the Euro NCAP crash tests, while Ford's Mustang was awarded just two, writes Brian Byrne.

The high level of standard-fit safety technologies, including autonomous emergency braking and pedestrian protection lifted the Volvos into the top scores beyond any model tested last year. The company's products are now the top three scoring cars ever in Euro NCAP.

The Mustang lost out with concerns about crash protection of adults and children in the car, as well as the removal of the Forward Collision Warning system on European versions. Specifically, airbags on the Mustang didn't inflate enough to properly restrain the occupants, and a lack of seatbelt pre-tensioners in the rear left back seat occupants open to abdominal injuries.

Ford says a face-lifted Mustang going on sale later this year will have improved technology, already available to US buyers of the car.

Three top performers in EuroNCAP tests

Three cars achieved a 5-star rating in the last round of Euro ENCAP crash tests for 2016, writes Brian Byrne.

They are the Ford Edge, the Audi Q2 and the Hyundai Ioniq, each of which achieved the maximum score with standard equipment.

The SsangYong Tivoli (below) and its longer sibling the XLV each received a base 3-star rating with standard equipment, and four stars when tested with their optional safety pack.

Suzuki’s new Ignis was awarded a 3-star rating when tested with its standard equipment and reached a 5-star rating when tested with a safety pack.

The dual rating scheme helps small manufacturers where price positioning doesn’t allow for advanced technologies to be standard equipment.

(All photos © Euro NCAP.)

Five crash stars for E-Class, 3008

The Mercedes-Benz new generation E-Class has easily achieved a 5-star rating in the Euro NCAP crash test regime, substantially going beyond the levels required for the rating, writes Brian Byrne.

In the occupant safety category, the E-Class scored 95pc, against the 80pc cutoff level. For child safety the car was awarded 90pc (75pc), in pedestrian protection it scored 77pc (60pc), and is assistance systems the car garnered 62pc (50pc).

Two ENCAP ‘Advanced’ awards were also made for the Pre-Safe and Attention Assist safety technologies, which are beyond the requirements for 5-star ratings.

The new Peugeot 3008 also achieved 5-star rating in the latest round of tests by ENCAP. It was awarded 86pc for adult occupant protection, 85pc for child occupant protection, 67pc for pedestrian safety and 85pc for safety assist systems.

New Sorento gets 5-star safety rating

Kia's new generation Sorento has achieved a 5-star safety rating in the Euro NCAP crash test regime, writes Brian Byrne.

The car has a significantly stronger body shell and a wide range of active safety technology. Kia's new SUV scored highly in all four areas (90 percent Adult Occupant Protection, 83 percent Child Occupant Protection, 67 percent Pedestrian Protection and 71 percent Safety Assist)

It goes on sale across Europe in the first half of 2015. Pictured above at the Paris Motor Show debut of the new Sorento are James Brooks and Aidan Doyle of Kia Ireland.

Crash test top cars

The crash test organisation Euro NCAP has listed the highest scoring cars in each category as tested in 2013.

In 2013, a total of 33 cars were tested in seven different categories. The top achievers gained the highest overall scores, calculated from the results achieved in adult, child, pedestrian protection and safety assist tests.

The top achievers were the Renault Zoe in the supermini segment, the Lexus IS 300h (Large Family), Kia Carens (Compact MPV), Ford Tourneo Connect (Small MPV), Qoros 3 Sedan (all Family), Jeep Cherokee (Small SUV), and Maserati Ghibli (Executive).

Volvo V40 is 'Europe's safest' car

The new Volvo V40 has achieved a 5-star rating and also the highest ever score recorded by the crash test regime of EuroNCAP, writes Brian Byrne.

In the individual measurements in the tests, the protection for adults was also the highest ever recorded, at 98 percent.

The provision of systems such as the WHIPS whiplash protection system are part of the reason for the high overall result, while in the safety assist category, the Volvo V40 scores maximum possible points.

Other systems include Pedestrian Detection and a special airbag to minimise injury to pedestrians hitting the windscreen, a Lane Keeping Aid which helps the driver stay within his or her lane, and BLIS which helps the driver detect vehicles in the offset rear ‘blind spot'.

Other cars which received the maximum 5-star rating in the latest ENCAP round of tests include the Renault Clio, the Ford B-MAX, and the Kia cee'd.

Latest ENCAP results

In the latest programme of crash tests by the EuroNCAP organisation, five star results were achieved by the Audi A6, the BMW X3, the Chevrolet Aveo and Chevrolet Orlando, the Citroën DS5, the Hyundai i40, the Opel Ampera, the VW Golf Cabriolet and Jetta.

Kia's Picanto was given a 4-star rating, because the car doesn't have Electronic Stability Control in all available models across Europe (although all versions in Ireland do have the full complement of available safety features, including ESC).

ESC will be mandatory in all new cars sold in Europe from next year.

Passat, Sharan, get five safety stars

VW's new Passat and Sharan models have achieved a 5-star rating in the Euro NCAP crash test regime.

The Sharan was awarded an overall rating of 96 percent, in part thanks to the provision of nine airbags.

The Passat retained the rating of its predecessor gaining strong scores for adult, child and pedestrian protection. Among its safety innovations is a fatigue detection system and a city traffic emergency braking function.

The VW Amorak pickup due for launch in Ireland during the first half of 2011 was awarded a 4-star rating.

Five for Countryman

The new Mini Countryman has achieved five stars in the Euro NCAP crash test regime.

It is the second model in the brand to do so - the Mini Cooper has already been awarded five stars in the tests, which were beefed up last year to take account of improvements in car safety overall.

The Countryman was awarded the maximum number of points for the front-end elements in relation to the risk of head injury to child pedestrians.

C-MAX gets five

Ford's C-MAX and Grand C-MAX have been awarded a 5-star Europ NCAP rating in that organisation's crash tests.

They also got the highest score ever recorded for whiplash protection.

The cars are the first on Ford's new global C-car platform, on which the new generation Focus will be rolled out in the spring.

Accord crash rating 78%

Under the new 2009 Euro NCAP car test regime, the Honda Accord has been given an overall five-star rating with a 78 percent score.


Honda's Accord in ENCAP crash test.

The new rating scheme focuses on the vehicle’s overall safety performance, and replaces the previous rating system, where the Accord had a 5 star adult occupant, 4 star child occupant and 3 star pedestrian protection scores.

The new rating scheme uses a weighted score, combining many aspects of a car’s safety performance: adult (50%), child (20%) and pedestrian (20%) protection assessment results with the availability of safety assistance devices (10%).

A minimum score of 70% overall is necessary to achieve a 5-star rating. To qualify for inclusion, the safety assistance devices (VSA for Honda) must be fitted, as standard across 85% of the EU 27 2009 model range.

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