Two cars built for the Indian market, the Volkswagen Taigun and Skoda Kushaq, have been awarded top ratings for adult and child occupant safety in the first round of demanding new Global New Car Assessment Programme (Global NCAP) crash test requirements. The independent consumer crash test initiative is supported by the FIA Foundation.

The Taigun and Kushaq are twin models which share the same platform and are produced in the same plant. The models achieved five-star ratings for adult and child occupant protection, and are the first models under the new protocols. Global NCAP’s crash test protocols assess frontal and side impact protection, Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and pedestrian protection.

The testing was part of the #safercarsforindia programme, which was launched by Global NCAP in 2014 with the objective of promoting safer vehicles in the country. Between 2014 and 2022 Global NCAP has completed more than fifty safety assessments which have acted as an important catalyst in the safety improvement of Indian cars.

Alejandro Furas, Secretary General of Global NCAP said: “We welcome and congratulate Skoda and Volkswagen’s initiative to meet Global NCAP’s new five-star requirements for the Kushaq and Taigun through voluntary testing. We urge all car makers to aspire to and achieve this level of crash test performance going forward, maintaining the momentum of safety improvements we have seen steadily develop through our programme since we began our Indian testing in 2014”.

David Ward, President of the Towards Zero Foundation said: “Following the introduction of Global NCAP’s more demanding protocol enhancements in July, it is satisfying to already see these five-star crash ratings for VW and Skoda. “The majority of domestic and international automakers understand that Indian consumers rightly expect high safety standards as a minimum requirement. We look forward to this trend continuing when Bharat NCAP gets underway next year.”

Saul Billingsley, Executive Director of the FIA Foundation, said “Global NCAP has catalysed a dramatic transformation of auto safety in India, from testing a large number of zero-star cars in 2014 to now pushing the five-star boundaries with new and more ambitious test protocols, which, as we see today, cars are achieving. Hundreds of thousands of five-star cars are now being driven on Indian roads, protecting occupants against death and serious injury.”