Rear door SMASHES OFF VW Sharan family MPV in latest Euro NCAP crash tests while Jeep Renegade scores the lowest rating of 2019 - but Tesla's Model X shines
- Watch as the rear sliding door of the £30,000 VW Sharan comes off in tests
- Despite the flaw, Euro NCAP awarded the 7-seat MPV a 4-star crash test rating
- Jeep's Renegade scored the lowest crash-safety grade of 2019 with 3 stars
- Tesla's Model X aced the assessments, as did Porsche's electric Taycan
This is the moment when the rear sliding door fitted to a Volkswagen MPV designed for large families came off in an impact assessment during the latest crash tests.
When collided with a pole in a side impact test, video footage shows how the rear passenger door of the seven-seat Sharan, which costs almost £30,000, comes away from the vehicle structure.
Despite this flaw, Euro NCAP, Europe's body for vehicle crash safety, still awarded it four out of five stars, which was better than the Jeep Renegade which achieved the lowest grading of 2019.
But it was not a match for Tesla's Model X, which bagged a five star score.
'I didn't want you to blow the bloody doors off!': This is the moment during crash test assessments that the rear sliding door of the VW Sharan detached from the vehicle
Sliding door comes off a VW's family MPV
The Volkswagen Sharan was penalised for its performance in the side pole test because its rear sliding door detached during the impact, presenting a risk of occupant ejection.
This pole crash is designed by the testing body to simulate collisions that are 'severe' and have a 'high frequency of death or serious injury'.
Euro NCAP's report said: 'In the side barrier impact, all critical body areas were well protected and the Sharan scored maximum points in this test.
'In the more severe side pole test, protection of the chest was adequate and that of other body areas was good.
'However, the side door of the Sharan became detached during the test and the score was penalised for the risk of occupant ejection.'
Matthew Avery, director of research, Thatcham Research and Euro NCAP board member said: 'Although the Volkswagen Sharan is an older design, families will still choose it.
'A structural failure of this magnitude in impact testing is disappointing.'
While the door did come off, Euro NCAP and Thatcham Research said the level of protection offered by the 7-seat Volkswagen Sharan is more than adequate
The pole crash is the most structurally invasive of all the assessments carried out by Euro NCAP as part of a full protection review, and despite the door detaching the Sharan showed a 'high level of protection for the occupants', Avery said.
He added that the overall performance of the vehicle's protective capability was not compromised by the door coming off, but the risk of ejection was the reason why the rating was downgraded to four stars.
For the Sharan to be awarded such a high score despite this issue seems very surprising, especially when you take into account that Fiat's Punto scored the lowest ever grade - a zero rating from Euro NCAP - in 2017 simply because it lacked some of the modern safety equipment rival vehicles now have.
The Jeep Renegade scored the lowest rating of 2019, with Euro NCAP giving it just 3 stars
Crash testing experts said Jeep as a brand was 'falling behind on safety again'
Jeep's Renegade scores lowest rating of 2019
While the majority of vehicles tested in 2019 have achieved five-star Euro NCAP ratings, the Jeep Renegade has become the first to receive three-stars this year.
It continues a less-than-impressive track record for the American SUV maker, which received the lowest rating of the year in 2018 with the Wrangler scoring a paltry one-star safety result.
Avery said the Renegade - a compact SUV to rival the likes of the Nissan Juke and Renault Captur that costs from around £21,500 - was proof that the brand, part of the Fiat Chrysler group, is 'falling behind on safety again'.
'Just compare it to the safety performance of the Mazda CX-30 [the safest vehicle tested in 2019], which is in the same class of vehicle,' he said.
Michiel van Ratingen, Euro NCAP’s secretary general, added: 'By prioritising looks over substance Jeep ended up at the bottom of the list of this year’s rated cars.
'The good news is that consumers have more choice than ever to find a safer alternative.'
Tesla's Model X shone during the latest round of Euro NCAP tests, proving that electric cars are very safe in accidents
Top marks for electric models
Worried electric cars aren't safe in a crash? Two highly desirable battery-only models have proved that you have nothing to worry about.
That's because Tesla's £82,700 Model X SUV and Porsche's all-new Taycan sports car (priced from £83,367) have aced crash tests as part of the Euro NCAP last round of vehicle measurements for 2019.
While both were awarded the highest five-star ratings for crash protection, it was the Tesla that stood out with some of the best marks of the year for any vehicle.
The pure-electric SUV was awarded a score of 98 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection and 94 per cent in Safety Assist – the category which assesses safety technology.
Not only were these ratings better than Porsche's electric model, (85 per cent and 83 per cent respectively) but it made the falcon-wing doored Tesla one of the safest cars of the year.
It scored the joint highest grade for 'safety assist', which is a test of the technology on-board designed to mitigate collisions
Even in tough side impact tests, the Tesla Model X - with its falcon wing rear doors - stood up to the impact well
Avery said: 'The devil’s in the detail when you compare the Euro NCAP assessments of the Tesla Model X and Porsche Taycan. Both are safe cars, but the Tesla Model X is the stand-out.'
Tesla said: 'All of these results are made possible by our all-electric architecture, which provides a low center of gravity, rigid passenger compartment, and large crumple zone. And, with our over-the-air updates, Model X (like all Tesla vehicles) continues to get even safer over time.
'We’re committed to building the safest cars on the road, and we’re excited to add these new Euro NCAP results to Model X’s record of safety excellence.'
Model X's 94 per cent score for Safety Assist matches the result achieved by the Tesla Model 3 earlier this year.
It means Tesla has the joint best result in that category by some margin - and the 83 per cent score achieved by the Porsche Taycan is now the second highest Safety Assist rating this year.
The Tesla Model X achieved its category-leading score for a variety of reasons, according to testers.
It's Autonomous Emergency Braking system was found to react quicker and more effectively than rival systems on the market, braking the vehicle early and intelligently.
This is thanks to the car having multiple cameras on the front, side and B-pillar that combine with radar technology to give it 'state-of-the-art performance', according to the test report.
But while the ratings for Tesla's biggest car currently were lauded in the measurements, Avery warned that the brand's AutoPilot system was still a cause for concern due to owners becoming overly reliant on it to keep them safe.
The Taycan is Porsche's first full-blooded electric sports car. It scored a 5-star Euro NCAP crash test rating
We will have our first drive report on the new Porsche Taycan in the coming weeks. We already know that it is structurally secure in a crash and offers lots of protection to occupants
'Tesla has long touted its cars as some of the safest on the market and given the performance of the Tesla Model 3 and Model X in Euro NCAP testing, they might just be right,' he added.
'However, the brand’s tendency to overstate the autonomous capability of its driver support systems remains a concern.
'These systems are leaders in crash avoidance, but drivers should not be encouraged to over-rely on them and must stay attentive at all times.'
The results for the Tesla Model X and Porsche Taycan now mean that Euro NCAP has crash tested 14 hybrid and electric models in the last two years. Every single one of them has received the highest five-star rating.
The rest of the cars crash tested
Other models tested in the final round of assessments included the Ford Kuga, Ford Mondeo, Renault Captur, Skoda Octavia and Subaru Forester, all scoring five stars.
The Peugeot 2008 was also graded in basic spec, receiving a four-star rating. Another version with an optional safety pack - which costs extra to have - included, getting a higher five-star score.
Michiel van Ratingen from Euro NCAP said: 'Well done to Tesla and the other 5 stars performers for not only bringing best in class performance in testing but also making safety systems accessible and standard across the European market.
'It is also good to see manufacturers – Ford and Volkswagen in this case –standardising AEB and keeping safety up-to-date even for older cars, to the benefit of their customers.'
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