A dark day for the Suzuki with the best model name of the moment: the S-Presso. Global NCAP rammed the cart into the wall with conviction. It gave the little Suzuki sad grades. Global NCAP also fired the Hyundai Grand i10 NIOS and the Kia Seltos at its walls. Those cars returned home with slightly better figures.
The umbrella organization behind Euro NCAP, Global NCAP, among others, has put a new range of cars sold in India to its safety tests. Global NCAP has been concerned for several years about the appalling scores that especially the cheapest basic versions of various cars in India achieve. The safety institute announced years ago that it did not want to see a single car return home with zero stars in 2020. That failed. The Suzuki S-Presso does not score a single NCAP star.
Although India has now made things like a driver’s airbag and ABS mandatory for every new car sold in the country, the Suzuki S-Presso still managed to get off with 0 NCAP stars. Global NCAP chairman Alejandro Furas says he is very disappointed. “Maruti Suzuki has the largest market share in India, but nevertheless offers such poor safety features for its customers. Other Indian manufacturers such as Mahindra and Tata offer much better features and even achieve five stars. It is time for Maruti Suzuki to take care of the safety. of its customers. “
Suzuki S-Presso in better times
Zero
The Maruti Suzuki S-Presso has an overall score of 0 stars, but managed to rake in two stars for the safety of children in the back. That is something. Why does the S-Presso achieve zero stars despite the presence of a driver’s airbag? A huge amount of force was applied to the co-driver’s neck and chest of both front occupants during the impact when the S-Presso was shattered.
Grand i10 Nios and Seltos
Global NCAP also slammed the European i10-related but Indian-marketed Grand i10 Nios and the larger Kia Seltos into the wall. Those cars scored better figures after NCAP’s fierce attempt to reduce them to dust, even though the small Hyundai is not doing well either. The Grand i10 Nios received two stars for adult safety in the front and the same number of stars for child safety in the rear. The Kia Seltos managed to get three stars for the safety of front passengers. The European i10 has some safety features not comparable to its Indian relative. No worries.
Hyundai Grand i10 Nios
In 2014, a series of Indian test results shot Global NCAP down the wrong path. In one session, the Tata Nano, the then current Hyundai i10, the Ford Figo (Ka +), the Maruti Suzuki Alto and the Volkswagen Polo were subjected to safety tests and a significant proportion of these cars were rated with zero or only a single star. Until recently, the basic versions of such mostly locally built models, which do not correspond in every respect to their European brothers, often had to do without airbags. The Tata Nexo is the first Indian-built car from a local manufacturer to ever earn five NCAP stars.