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Kia defends four star NCAP result
Soul sold in Australia still gets five Aussie NCAP starsKia Australia has defended the crash safety of the second generation Soul small car in the wake of a four star rating by the independent New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) in Europe.
In the same pre-Christmas announcement, Euro NCAP confirmed a maximum five stars for the Audi A3 Sportback e-tron plug-in hybrid that goes on-sale in Australia early in 2015 and the Jeep Renegade mini-SUV that is scheduled to launch here late this year.
Euro NCAP criticised the Soul because spot welds released and ruptured the driver footwell during the frontal impact test. The car rated 75 per cent for adult occupant protection, 82 per cent for child occupant protection, 59 per cent for pedestrian protection and 56 per cent for safety assist.
Euro NCAP also awarded four stars out of a maximum five to the new EV version of the Soul, out-scoring the diesel version for adult protection at 84 per cent.
It criticised both versions for weak chest protection in the pole test.
However, Kia dropped the diesel engine out of its Australian range with the arrival of the new generation Soul in February 2014 and argues its internal crash testing results show the 1.6-litre petrol-engined version sold here would qualify for five Australian NCAP stars.
It also has no intention of importing the electric version
"According to Kia internal numbers, the Soul as sold in Australia is still a five star vehicle," said media and corporate communications manager Kevin Hepworth.
He conceded the four star Euro NCAP rating might damage the car's chances with some potential buyers.
"There's nothing we can do about that. Obviously that test was carried out and has given the result it has given. It is not a car we sell or intend to sell."
ANCAP communications manager Rhianne Robson confirmed Kia Australia had supplied it with information about the Soul and that there was no intention to publish the Euro NCAP result on the ANCAP site.
"We have been told the Soul [as tested in Europe] is different to the one we have here so we won't be doing anything with that rating," she said.
The A3 tested – Audi's first production plug-in hybrid – rated 82 per cent score for front occupant protection, 78 per cent score for child occupant protection, 66 per cent score for pedestrian protection, and 68 per cent for safety assist features and technologies.
The Renegade, which shares its underpinnings with the Fiat 500X and is built in Italy, scored best of all four cars, with 87 per cent, 85 per cent, 65 per cent and 74 per cent scores across the four categories.
The testing of these four cars is the last under the old Euro NCAP regulations. In 2015 it introduces significant changes including a new full frontal crash test, a replacement side impact test with a different barrier and a new crash test dummy.
The intention is for Euro NCAP and ANCAP testing to be aligned by 2018. Until then vehicle manufacturers will have the right to nominate which testing regime scores it wants reported on the ANCAP site and the source of the results will be stated and date stamped.
Meanwhile, Euro NCAP has announced its 'Best in Class Cars' of 2014, which are the vehicles that achieved the highest overall scores in their respective categories. They included the Mercedes-Benz C-Class (Large Family), Nissan Qashqai (Small Family), Volkswagen Golf Sportsvan (Small MPV), Land Rover Discovery Sport (Small Off-Road 4x4) and the Skoda Fabia (Supermini).
"The results show a split emerging between small, price-competitive cars and those in the larger categories," Euro NCAP said in a statement. "All of the Large Family cars tested by Euro NCAP in 2014 achieved a five star rating. By contrast, the Skoda Fabia was the only Supermini to be awarded five stars, despite the fact that 14 models in that category were assessed during the year.
"In the Small MPV category, only the VW Golf Sportsvan got the top rating, with more than half the segment scoring only three stars. It shows that manufacturers are still struggling to make driver assist technology available in market segments where every cent counts."
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Written byBruce Newton
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