In 2021, NCAP again drove 33 new passenger cars to pieces during its safety tests. The safety institute now thinks it is time to announce the best performing cars per class.
In 2021, the European branch of the safety institute Global NCAP has subjected a total of 33 new models to its extensive safety tests. It is not only cars with test dummies packed with sensors that are driven to shreds against walls and poles to find out how the occupants fare in the event of a real accident. The Euro NCAP researchers are also examining the active and passive safety systems of new models. They give points not only for the existing systems, but also for their precise operation. Euro NCAP has divided its new models tested in 2021 into six classes and is now pushing the winner of each group.
NCAP
Of the 33 new models tested last year, no fewer than 22 achieved the maximum achievable score of 5 NCAP stars. However, there can only be one best per class. In the Executive class, the Mercedes-Benz EQS is the safest car of all new models tested in 2021. The electric top sedan from Mercedes-Benz thus narrowly beats the Polestar 2. The fact that the Polestar 2 and the EQS are classified in the same class, immediately indicates that Euro NCAP is not so careful with segments. The EQS and Polestar 2 also take first and second place in succession in the ‘Pure Electric’ category.
In class that Euro NCAP has called ‘Large Off-road’, the Skoda Enyaq iV has won the most points. He just leaves the BMW iX behind. In the ‘Small Offroad’ category, the new Nissan Qashqai wins. Nissan’s third-generation Qashqai remains the Volkswagen ID4, which finishes in second place. Incidentally, it is striking that the technically very closely related ID4 and Skoda Enyaq iV are each placed in a different class. The fact that Euro NCAP has difficulty with segments is apparent from the class that it calls ‘Small MPV’. In this, the Toyota Yaris Cross – a compact crossover – is the winner and the Volkswagen Caddy is in second place. The Skoda Fabia can call itself the winner in the Small Family Car segment.
Renault Zoe (NCAP 2021)
It wasn’t all hosanna, of course. In addition to seven cars that returned home in 2021 with a neat score of four NCAP stars, there were also a handful of models that ended up with less fine reports. The Dacia Sandero Stepway and Logan only achieved two out of five stars, but the Dacia Spring and Renault Zoe scored even worse. The Dacia Spring had to make do with one star and the Renault Zoe didn’t even get a single NCAP star. The Zoe immediately illustrates how much Euro NCAP’s safety requirements have been tightened over the years. In 2013, the model was still good for the maximum achievable score of five stars.
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