Ford Motor’s Aspire (nextgen Figo) model has been awarded a 3-star rating for its adult occupation protection and 2 stars for child protection while its US counterpart in India General Motors has failed to make at crash tests for its Chevrolet Enjoy model with zero star rating in the first set of SaferCarsForIndia results for 2017, conducted by Global NCAP for crash tests.
The Chevrolet Enjoy, which is sold without airbags in its basic version, recorded a disappointing zero stars for adult occupant protection with the crash test results showing that due to the lack of airbags and poor structural performance the driver injuries would have been unacceptably high. It also scored 2 stars for rear seat child occupant protection.
On the other hand, the Ford Aspire (nextgen Figo) however fared much better. The vehicle is fitted with double airbags as standard and scored three stars for adult occupant protection and 2 stars for child protection.
David Ward, secretary general of Global NCAP, said: “Ford’s three star result shows that basic levels of safety are achievable as standard in the Indian vehicle market. It is also encouraging to see progress in safety compared to the earlier version of the Figo we tested in 2014. In contrast, we are extremely concerned about the poor result of the Chevrolet Enjoy. There is nothing to enjoy about a zero star safety score and GM, should be embarrassed that they are selling cars with such inadequate levels of occupant protection to Indian consumers.”
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In their 2015 sustainability report, Chevrolet’s parent company, General Motors (GM), the company’s chairman & CEO Mary Barra made a strong commitment that GM will be ‘an industry leader’ in vehicle safety.
She also stated that quality and safety for GM “are foundational commitments, never compromised”. Unfortunately, the safety of the Chevrolet Enjoy is clearly compromised and this zero star car proves that Mary Barra’s fine words have not yet translated into action in India, Ward said.
Rohit Baluja, president of the Institute of Road Traffic Education, said: “Statistics by the Union government reveal that speed is the causative factor of deaths of over 64,000 people in road crashes every year and that in 2015 over 63% of the 1,46,000 road crash fatalities occurred on national and state highways. Vehicle manufacturers today should adopt the global philosophy of the safe systems approach the thought process of which reflects that even if crashes do occur, road users should not die or get seriously injured. This is particularly important for the Indian scenario.”