A Stellantis model has been rated poorly in the latest round of Euro NCAP safety ratings.
In a group consiting of the Audi Q6 e-tron, the Ford Explorer, the Jeep Avenger, the Renault Symbioz, the Subaru Crosstrek, and the Xpeng G6, the biggest surprise was the award winning Avenger achieving only a three star rating, the organisation said.
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The Q6, Explorer, G6, the Crosstrek and sibling Impreza all delivered a five star performance.
The Q6 demonstrated a very strong performance in adult and child occupant protection while the Symbioz achieved four stars, a result it shared with the Captur. This however was a step down from the five stars awarded to previous Captur generations in 2013 and 2019.
The Avenger achieved a “mediocre” three star rating.
“For a car focused on family transport, it is particularly surprising that the Avenger provided poor chest protection to a 10-year-old in the side impact crash test and is not equipped with a child presence detection system, already standard in competitors’ cars. Moreover, Euro NCAP found that the forward collision warning system’s audio signal was not effective. Following Euro NCAP’s persistence, the carmaker has improved the warning signal on current production vehicles and is offering owners of existing cars the chance to have their cars updated. Still, the Avenger performed poorly in several crash avoidance tests with pedestrians, motorcyclists, and cyclists,” Euro NCAP said.
“These test results demonstrate a clear lack of ambition for a manufacturer that has shown much innovation in its car design and for a brand that is directly targeting the family segment. There is growing competition in the car industry, and Stellantis has had to take several steps to secure the future of its brands. But safety should not be where a car manufacturer makes its savings. Euro NCAP will continue to highlight shortcomings in this area, for the benefit of European car buyers, ” said secretary-general Michiel van Ratingen.
