New NCAP regulations mandate autonomous emergency braking technology as well as pedestrian detection for a five star-rating. The Volvo XC90 is the first car to clear, followed by the Audi Q7, which also passed with a five-star rating.
In pursuit of greater safety, the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) has consistently been upping the norms and the criteria for new cars. The Euro NCAP safety rating covers four different areas: Adult Occupant, Child Occupant, Pedestrian Protection and Safety Assist. The latest development with NCAP norms is the need for mandatory lane-support, autonomous emergency braking as well as speed assistance technology to qualify for a five-star rating. The City Safety technology from Volvo has scored 100 per cent result for safety assist, which includes the Euro NCAP Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) car-to-car rear-end tests (AEB City and AEB Interurban).
The 2015 Volvo XC90 scores a full 100 marks in Safety Assist, thanks to the IntelliSafe safety suite that incorporates obstacle detection – cars, buses, bikes, pedestrians, large animals, and cyclists, day and night, collision warning, corner auto brake assist as well as run-off-road crash protection system. The XC90 scored 97 in Adult Protection, 87 in Child Occupant Protection and 72 in Pedestrian Protection categories. The Swedish manufacturer is working hard towards Vision 2020 – an endeavour to ensure no-one is killed or injured seriously in a new Volvo.
The 2015 Audi Q7 responded with scores of 94 in Adult Protection, 70 in Pedestrian Protection, 76 in Safety Assist, but with one more mark in the Child Occupant category – 88 to the XC90’s 87. The seven-seater SUV scores well in front, rear and side impact collisions. In addition to this the Q7 also received the ‘Euro NCAP Advanced’ award for multi-collision brake-assist system which is a part of the Audi pre-sense technology. The system initiates full deceleration and accidents can be avoided at speeds up to 38 km/h. At speeds up to 83 km/h, the system analyses the variables, and, in case of an imminent accident, warns the driver through a modulated progression: warning, warning jolt and finally automatic emergency braking. The Q7 is loaded with a host of other safety features such as the turn assist and lane-exit warning.
The other cars to score five-star ratings are the new Skoda Superb, the Volkswagen Touran, Ford Galaxy and S-Max, the exciting new Renault Kadjar, and the Toyota Avensis.
