Tata Nexon becomes India’s first car to score a PERFECT 5 stars in Global NCAP safety test

Tata Nexon, which was earlier tested by Global NCAP in August 2016 was re-tested to receive highest ever points by a made-in-India vehicle. The Nexon received 16.06 points out of 17, which is the highest ever achieved by any car ever made in India. This adds one more star to the Nexon’s earlier 4-star rating by the same testing agency.

The new 5-star rating has been updated by the Global NCAP agency and Alejandro Furas, Technical Director, Global NCAP explains the same,

“The ABS, or anti-locking brakes, in a full channel version, is a standard fitment for all the cars, so all the Nexon’s wheels have ABS in four channels. At the same time, the seat belt reminder was also now introduced by the manufacturer as a standard feature for driver and passenger side as well.”

It should be noted that the Tata Nexon’s body shell, platform and structure remained unchanged from the tests that were done in August 2018. Even the number standard dual front airbags of the Nexon remain the same. It is only the addition of the full-channel version of ABS in the Nexon as standard fitment plus the seatbelt reminder of the driver and the passenger raises the score of the vehicle. Even the 3-star rating given to the child safety remains exactly as earlier.

David Ward, Global NCAP Secretary-General said,

“This is a huge landmark for car safety in India. Congratulations to Tata Motors for achieving India’s first five star rating for adult occupant protection. Congratulations also to Mahindra for their first four star result. The Nexon was engineered in India and this shows the huge capability of the domestic industry to achieve excellence in safety design and performance. With the Nexon, Tata have shown the global car industry that to achieve five stars you can ‘Make in India’. Global NCAP is looking forward to many more Indian five star cars and further improvements in both pedestrian protection and crash avoidance.”

The new 5-star rating of the Tata Nexon would push many other manufacturers to produce safer cars in the Indian market. The Indian government has already announced that roll-out of Bharat New Vehicle Safety Assesment Program (BNVSAP) that will make the vehicles much safer than they are currently. The mandatory safety program would ensure that all the vehicle sold in the Indian market meet a certain minimum safety net.

The Tata Motors vehicles have often been appreciated for the impeccable built quality and the Global NCAP results echo the same. Tata has said that in the future all its vehicles would target the 5-star rating and would definitely have a minimum of a 4-star rating. This is expected to become a trend other manufacturers would also follow the steps of the Tata Motors and would want to produce safer cars for the Indian market.

Maruti Vitara Brezza, the Nexon’s chief rival in India, has scored 4 stars in the Global NCAP safety test. It remains to be seen if Global NCAP retests the Brezza in the coming months.