The 2015 Hyundai Tucson has received a 4 star rating by ANCAP with the crash testing authority claiming the “structural integrity of the footwell was compromised in the frontal offset test”.
ANCAP HAS ISSUED the 2015 Hyundai Tucson with a 4 star ANCAP rating after poor performance in the frontal offset test revealed “the structural integrity of the driver footwell was compromised in the frontal offset test and there was also excessive movement of the brake pedal, meaning the vehicle could not achieve 5 stars,”ANCAP Chief Executive Officer James Goodwin said.
The Hyundai Tucson tested by ANCAP realised 11.46 out of 16 in the frontal offset test, yet scored almost perfect scores in other tests for a total ANCAP score of 32.46 out of 37. Breaking down the frontal offset score even further, the Tucson realised 3 or 4 out of 4 for three of the categories measured, but the fourth category, lower legs, realised just 0.41 out of 4. The 4 star rating applies to the 2.0 litre GDi petrol two-wheel drive variants that have been available to the Australian and New Zealand markets since August 2015.
“The result is disappointing and unexpected for a new vehicle in this competitive class,” Goodwin said.
It’s worth mentioning, the Hyundai Tucson on-sale in Australia is not the same as the Tucson on-sale in Europe which was recently awarded a 5 star rating by EuroNCAP.
“The left-hand-drive Tucson recently rated by Euro NCAP received a higher score due to differences in the crash performance as well as a higher standard of safety features, including a pop-up bonnet to improve pedestrian safety, which are not available to consumers in Australasia,” Goodwin said.
“It’s encouraging however, that Hyundai has taken immediate steps following the test to make design and production changes to improve the safety of the model,” Mr Goodwin said.
“This demonstrates the importance of the independent testing conducted by ANCAP to continually improve the safety of the vehicle fleet,” he said.
“ANCAP has agreed to test the vehicle once the design changes are in production and it’s hoped the countermeasures will improve the vehicle’s overall rating,” Mr Goodwin said.
