The Volkswagen ID.4 and Škoda ENYAQ iV have each scored a top five-star rating at the latest European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP).
Both ID.4 and ENYAQ iV were said to have turned in impressive performances during the crash test and so separated by no more than a few points in the different areas of assessment.
“With robust structures to protect occupants and the high-voltage battery and frontal, curtain and centre airbags as standard, both cars achieve a score of over 90 percent for adult occupant protection,” EuroNCAP revealed, adding, “Compared to the smaller ID.3, the ID.4 and ENYAQ iV hold more appeal for family buyers wanting more space, and potential owners will be reassured with high marks in child occupant protection, as well as for the protection of vulnerable road users and for safety assistance.
“VW also fit Local Hazard Warning as standard equipment on the ID.4 but the system is not yet available on the ENYAQ iV.”
The ENYAQ iV is Škoda’s first ground-up all-electric vehicle and uses the same MEB platform – VW Group’s modular platform for battery electric vehicles – that is used for the new Volkswagen ID.4 and the ID.3 tested by Euro NCAP last year.
On the other hand, The Dacia Sandero Stepway left the test cetre with only a two-star rating. The same applied to the saloon version of the vehicle, the Logan.
However, by contrast, EuroNCAP described the Dacia Sandero Stepway and Logan as true to the budget brand’s ‘no-frills’ ethos and have a pared-down safety specification.
It said: “The basic, radar-only autonomous emergency braking system reacts only to other vehicles – soon a legal requirement – but it is not designed to prevent crashes with pedestrians or cyclists and there is no lane support.
“However, crash protection is respectable, with performance that would make the car a four-star performer if it were not for its shortcomings elsewhere.”
Commenting on the safety reports, Michiel van Ratingen, Secretary-General of Euro NCAP said: “Safety had moved on, and the biggest strides forward are now being made by using high-tech to prevent accidents from happening.
“Clearly, Dacia have found their market and they’re sticking to it, but a two-star rating shows little ambition, even for a low-cost product. Their decision not to offer a camera clearly is out of step with the market and disappointing as Dacia are aware that their cars will soon have to comply with the new General Safety Regulation. Škoda and VW, on the other hand, show what can be achieved and Euro NCAP applauds them for offering their customers the highest level of safety.”
Established in 1997 and backed by several European Governments, motoring, consumer and insurance organizations, Euro NCAP organizes crash tests on new vehicles and provides motoring consumers with a realistic and independent assessment of the safety performance of some of the most popular cars sold in Europe.
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