ANCAP praises Honda Accord design changes in a raft of five star ratings, but is critical of Nissan for omitting Autonomous Emergency Braking from the Nissan X-Trail in Australia.
ANCAP HAS RELEASED crash test results for the Honda Accord, Honda City, Nissan X-Trail, Peugeot 308 (diesel only) and Toyota Prius C with all achieving five-star ratings, with the Honda Accord rising from four stars to five.
However, ANCAP have been critical of Nissan’s decision to omit Autonomous Emergency Braking from the Nissan X-Trail in Australia (the function is available on European models). “Today’s awarding of a 5 star ANCAP safety rating to the Nissan X-Trail is bittersweet with yet another high selling Nissan model de-specified for the Australasian market,” ANCAP said in a statement.
According to ANCAP chairman, Lauchlan McIntosh it is because of ANCAP testing that Honda’s Accord received design changes enabling it to score five stars in testing.
“As a result of ANCAP’s independent testing, we have seen Honda improve the design of the Accord to raise its safety rating from 4 to 5 stars,” he said.
The current generation Honda Accord was first tested by ANCAP in July 2013 with results revealing “an elevated risk of injury to the lower legs of the driver in the frontal offset test” – that saw the Accord receive a four star rating.
“Subsequent design changes have improved its performance, with a second round of testing revealing a lower injury risk. The frontal offset test score rose from 11.21 points (models built June 2013 to July 2014) to 14.79 points (models built from August 2014 onward) raising its rating to 5 stars,” a statement read.
“This is a great example of a non-regulatory program at work. While not required to improve its performance, Honda has reviewed the ANCAP test results and actively implemented changes to offer consumers a safer car,” McIntosh said.
“Now, not only does the Accord offer a long list of impressive safety assist technologies, including AEB on select models, it also offers improved occupant protection through a sound structure. The coupling of sound structure and active safety features is key to saving lives on our roads.”
