[shashank.nk]

These particular lines caught my attention:

Mathur also defended the companies stating that they have not "duped consumers".

"None of these companies have ever claimed that their models are 5-star rated on safety. The consumers are aware what they are buying. What Global NCAP should be doing is to spread awareness on safety and encourage customers to buy cars with all safety features, even if they come at higher cost," he said.

Source:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/b...w/45037615.cms

So in effect what they're saying is, all of you who assumed that the body structure isn't compromised compared to euro cars are naive,gullible fools!

How on earth can you say costumers 'are aware' of what they're buying when there are no test results for the compromised car sold to them ?

This is truly nauseating coming from the head of consortium of automobile manufacturers.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by shashank.nk

These particular lines caught my attention:
None of these companies have ever claimed that their models are 5-star rated on safety. The consumers are aware what they are buying

I think Hyundai i20 did in fact boast of 5 star safety when it was originally launched in 2009. They infact put those stickers in the rear windshield of even Magna variant which didn't have airbags and was clearly not eligible for 5 stars.

[heavenlybull]

Originally Posted by StepUP!

"The speeds that can be achieved by the vehicle given our roads makes it completely different, so applying a foreign standard may not be practical"

According to Mathur , two cars traveling in opposing direction each with a speed of 32 km/hr and meeting head on can never happen in a country like India.

[gkrishn]

Originally Posted by zenren

I think Hyundai i20 did in fact boast of 5 star safety when it was originally launched in 2009. They infact put those stickers in the rear windshield of even Magna variant which didn't have airbags and was clearly not eligible for 5 stars.

I don't think the trim that got 5 star rating was sold in india. it was another deliberate misquote from the manufacturer.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by gkrishn

I don't think the trim that got 5 star rating was sold in india. it was another deliberate misquote from the manufacturer.

I think they had the i20 Asta Option pack with 6 airbags and sunroof available that was supposed to be on-par with Euro version.

In any case, I was just contradicting the claim made by SIAM director general Vishnu Mathur that none of the companies ever claimed that their models were rated 5-star on safety.

Mathur also defended the companies stating that they have not "duped consumers". "None of these companies have ever claimed that their models are 5-star rated on safety.

In case he forgot, Hyundai did infact claim exactly that for i20 long back.

[civic-sense]

Originally Posted by zenren

I think Hyundai i20 did in fact boast of 5 star safety when it was originally launched in 2009. They infact put those stickers in the rear windshield of even Magna variant which didn't have airbags and was clearly not eligible for 5 stars.

Remember, i20 initially sold here were from their export plant. They manufactured only a few for us, and then price was higher than competition. That should explain.

[ece2k2]

Originally Posted by zenren

I think Hyundai i20 did in fact boast of 5 star safety when it was originally launched in 2009. They infact put those stickers in the rear windshield of even Magna variant which didn't have airbags and was clearly not eligible for 5 stars.

While I just love MS Swift (have 2 of them - 2005 VXi and 2008 LDi), I must tell that I never felt safe in a Swift at high speeds. If I remember correctly, the initial Swift product brochures had 4* Euro NCAP ratings printed prominently - not sure why they advertised something if the details aren't relevant to their Indian version. I still make it a point not to drive a Swift at high speeds or on highways - even though it is a very capable car purely ruined by poor build quality.

[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by heavenlybull

According to Mathur , two cars traveling in opposing direction each with a speed of 32 km/hr and meeting head on can never happen in a country like India.

We have to see this in perspective. Crash tests are conducted at an assumed residual speed after braking. By this logic even 64 kmph is too slow as cars across the world, including India, run at speeds around 100 to 120 kmph. However it is assumed that the actual impact often occurs at lower speeds. Studies have shown that cars getting full 5 star rating at the test speed of 64 kmph completly fail at as low as 80 kmph. Simply put an actual crash at speeds over 80 to 100 kmph has slim chances of survival in any car as the forces of deceleration would be fatal even if the car remains intact.

Having said this, though it is true that overall speeds in India are lower, most Indian highways have speed limits of 100 and even in Delhi NCR many roads have people travelling at 80 or more. Hence similar standards should be applied in India as in Europe.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by heavenlybull

According to Mathur , two cars traveling in opposing direction each with a speed of 32 km/hr and meeting head on can never happen in a country like India.

Two cars travelling in opposite directions at 32km/h is not going to have the same impact as one car hitting a wall at 64km/h. Both those cars would have the same damage as a car travelling at 32km/h hitting a wall.

The reason is that there are 2 cars (twice the mass) to share the resultant force meaning each car would only get half of it, while in case of a car-vs-wall crash at 64km/h, the wall is immovable and hence the entire force is acting upon the single car.

[Carophilic]

People, pls do research before posting ignorant rants..The following is a straight lift from Euro NCAP website:"The test speed of 64 km/h represents a car to car collision with each car travelling at around 55 km/h."
This is derived from basic physics of relative speeds. This is actually a seriously big crash that is being simulated.

[psankar]

Originally Posted by Hayek

Come on - Maruti provides fuel efficient cars that happily run on a mixture of diesel, kerosene and water, do not breakdown, and are cheap to run and service. What more can you want? Most Indians do not wear seat belts - so why are you whining about structural integrity,air bags, and other such useless features? Maruti gives Indian car buyers just what they want - features, looks, fuel efficiency and service. You benefit from these every day, but need safety features rather rarely. After all, how many of you have had accidents even in the last year? So why waste money on safe, but unreliable and costly to maintain cars?

Are you really serious or being sarcastic ? About 16 people die and 58 are injured every hour in India. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/i...w/37720159.cms

[heavenlybull]

@zenren, carophilic - thanks for the added information and apologies. I did some further reading on http://www.euroncap.com/tests/frontimpact.aspx

Posting link for others convenience.

[nim_peter]

I'm impressed with the safety details in an F1 car, no airbags, no ABS and high speed crashes and the driver walks out unhurt just because he wears a seat belt and the cockpit is super strong(carbon fibre). Indian manufacturers need to think on those same lines if they are worried about cost. They need to focus on strong shells than ABS/airbags, but they won't, fearing poor mileage. I think it is ok to sacrifice 1-2kmpl for a heavier car. If I buy a swift, first thing I'll do is put some rollcages on

[zenren]

Originally Posted by nim_peter

I'm impressed with the safety details in an F1 car, no airbags, no ABS and high speed crashes and the driver walks out unhurt just because he wears a seat belt and the cockpit is super strong(carbon fibre). Indian manufacturers need to think on those same lines if they are worried about cost.

Do you even have a vague idea (at least the number of zeros) of how much a carbon fibre chassis of an F1 car costs?

[theredliner]

Originally Posted by giri1.8

Buddy, is there any report which suggests that car which you own(I am assuming it to be made in India fiat) is safer than those tin cans? sheet metal thickness, weight and other things wont convince me. Vista had earned only 3 stars even though its very heavy. I was blaming Hyundai for poor safety and even argued with sales executive while looking for a new car, now after the report I have a foot on mouth situation thanks to the three stars earned by my car.

The Vista even though earned 3 stars, didn't have its structure deformed. If we can assume that the Indian model has same construction, then it is one of the few cars in India <10L that don't deform.