Euro NCAP has released crash-test safety ratings for seven new vehicles, including the fresh-faced Mercedes-Benz A-Class. The A-Class hatchback, along with the updated Mazda6 (which is no longer offered in South Africa) and the new Lexus ES, achieved the maximum five-star rating.
The Hyundai Nexo, meanwhile, also scored five stars, becoming the first hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle that Euro NCAP has tested. The Peugeot Rifter and its stablemates, the Citroën Berlingo and Opel Combo, meanwhile, each managed four stars.
The A-Class scored 96 percent for adult occupant safety, 91 percent for child occupant safety, 92 percent for vulnerable road user safety and 75 percent for its safety assistance equipment.
The safety authority commented that the passenger compartment of the A-Class “remained stable” in the frontal offset test, with dummy readings indicating “good protection” of the knees and femurs of both the driver and front passenger.
In the full-width rigid barrier test, protection of all critical body areas was rated “good or adequate” for both the driver and the rear passenger. Maximum points were scored in the side barrier impact, with good protection of all body areas. In the more severe side-pole test, protection of the chest was described as “adequate” and that of other critical body regions was good.
According to Euro NCAP, the hatchback’s autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system performed “well” in tests of its functionality at low speeds typical of city driving, with collisions “avoided or mitigated” in all test scenarios.
Watch the A-Class undergo its Euro NCAP test below (and head over to the organisation’s YouTube page to view other tests)…
