Euro NCAP has announced its final car safety results for 2021, with models from BMW and Nissan receiving top marks, while right at the bottom, Renault’s electric Zoe received no stars.
BMW’s new technological flagship – the electric iX – was one model that received the top five-star safety rating, with this SUV - which boasts a range of up to 380 miles – particularly impressing.
Other five-star cars included the new Volkswagen Caddy, Skoda Fabia supermini and new premium brand Genesis’ G70 saloon and GV70 SUV. The latest Nissan Qashqai crossover also really impressed Euro NCAP with its ‘stand-out performance in the area of safety assists’, while the new luxury, electric Mercedes EQS saloon received high praise for its adult and child occupant protection.
Fiat’s new electric 500 city car received a ‘commendable’ four-star rating, too, as did MG’s new electric Marvel R SUV, which is yet to be confirmed for the UK.
However, there were some very disappointing results from Group Renault, with the French firm’s Zoe hatchback receiving no stars whatsoever – being only one of three cars ever to receive no rating. The electric supermini, which debuted in 2013 and received an update in 2020 was lamented for ‘receiving several battery improvements but no added safety’. In fact, a change in the airbags use actually saw a ‘degradation in occupant protection’, according to Euro NCAP. Overall, the safety body said the Zoe ‘offers poor protection in crashes and lacks meaningful crash avoidance technology’.
Dacia, which is part of Renault, also received a poor rating for its new budget Spring EV. Rumoured to be arriving in the UK in 2022, Euro NCAP said that its ‘performance in crash tests is downright problematic, with a high-risk of life-threatening injuries’.
Michiel van Ratingen, secretary general of Euro NCAP, said: “Bravo to these manufacturers for giving consumers the levels of safety they have come to expect. These results once more make clear that safety is all about good engineering and less about the type of powertrain or price per se.”
He added: “Renault was once synonymous with safety. The Laguna was the first car to get five stars, back in 2001. But these disappointing results for the Zoe and the Dacia Spring show that safety has now become collateral damage in the group’s transition to electric cars.
“Not only do these cars fail to offer any appreciable active safety as standard, but their occupant protection is also worse than any vehicle we have seen in many years.”
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