New Delhi: Maruti Suzuki's premium selling model Swift and Nissan's Datsun Go have failed miserably in the crash tests done by Global NCAP, a company which deals with car and road safety tests.
According to tests done by Global NCAP, an independent charity based in the U.K. focused on consumer-orientated vehicle safety initiatives, these cars received zero for adult protection ratings in a frontal impact at 64 km/hour.
Two variants of Swift were tested - one exported by Maruti to Latin America, and another which sells as the base variant here in India. Crash test reports indicate that the structural integrity of the vehicle is also unstable.
The Europe made Swift reportedly gets sturdier structure and other safety features that has earned itself a 5 - Star crash certification from Euro-NCAP.
However, there is no need to panic as these cars are declared unsafe only if you are caught in a head-on collision with another vehicle.
Some of the most popular small cars sold in India, including Maruti Alto 800, Tata Nano, Ford Figo, Hyundai i10 and Volkswagen Polo, have failed crash tests conducted in January this year, showing high risk of life-threatening injuries in road accidents, according to Global NCAP.
Global NCAP's testing protocol mandates that all cars (including the base variant or cheapest model) must carry at least airbags and ABS to get its certification; so on that count alone, the Indian Swift model, which sells for from Rs. 4.5 to 7 lakh, failed the test even before the test began.
The Datsun also do not have airbags and ABS. The car's body shell disintegrated severely during the same kind of test. The driver and passenger dummies sustained fatal injuries to the head, torso and legs.
