The made-in-India Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun have bagged a 5-star safety rating under the latest round of crash tests conducted by Global NCAP under their new and upgraded test protocol. These midsize SUVs, based on the same platform, are the first vehicles to score a 5-star rating for both adult and child occupants. In India, the Skoda Kushaq is priced starting at Rs. 11.29 lakh, ex-showroom whereas the Taigun has a starting price of Rs. 11.56 lakh, ex-showroom.
The Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun scored 29.64 points in adult occupant protection out of a total score of 34. In the child occupant protection, both midsize SUVs scored 42 points out of a maximum of 49 points. As per reports shared by GNCAP, both vehicles performed well under side impact tests. It is to be noted that points are now awarded for front and rear seat belt reminders as well.
Adult occupant protection – 29.64/34 (5-star)
Global NCAP’s updated crash test protocols take into account frontal and side impact protection for all tested models. On top of that, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), pedestrian protection and side impact pole protection assessments are also required for vehicles and help them score the highest star ratings.
The models were assessed in their most basic safety specification, with ESC fitted as standard. According to the reports, the models demonstrated a stable structure in the frontal impact, adequate to good protection for adult occupants and marginal to good protection in the side impact scenarios. Additionally, child occupants received full protection during the front and side impact.
Child occupant protection – 42/49 (5-star)
Alejandro Furas, Secretary General of Global NCAP said that they urge all car makers to aspire to and achieve this level of crash test performance going forward and maintain the safety improvements developed through their programme since they began their Indian testing in 2014.
David Ward, President of the Towards Zero Foundation said the majority of domestic and international automakers understand that Indian consumers rightly expect high safety standards as a minimum requirement. “We look forward to this trend continuing when Bharat NCAP gets underway next year,” he added.
Piyush Arora, Managing Director and CEO of Skoda Auto Volkswagen India said that the group has always focused on providing the highest level of safety across its model range and claims that safety has always been central to their R&D process. The Made-in-India, Made-for-India MQB-A0-IN platform is no exception and has been internally tested for various impacts and is developed with a key focus on safety. He is confident that this recognition will help continue the brand’s growth momentum.
