[Lij]

TheLizardKing - thanks a ton. A very good quick reference guide to buying a safer car.

And as you said I do hope people look up to this list when making a buying decision, it could save a life.

[saket77]

Lizard King, that is a very useful compilation of facts at one place. New car buyers should definitely have a look at the tables you have drawn. Very glad to see that safety is taking a front seat these days, not only on the forum, but in the outside world too.
Also, to be future proof and of course for their own safety, new car buyers should try to stretch their budget a little and get a car with all safety kit in place. Manufacturers on the other hand should try to keep the profitability on the safety components on the lower side, aiding the car buyers.

Thanks for coming up with it.
Regards,
Saket

[catchjyoti]

@Lizard King - Excellent thread. This will help me to choose my next car. Hopefully by 2016 when I manage to save some $$s. My absolute musts are auto-gear (no AMT, 6+ gears if TC or DTC / responsive CVT) and minimum safety (Dual front air bags plus ABS). Your spreadsheet will definitely help. Hats off to the BIG effort that must have gone into it.

[Crazy_cars_guy]

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing

The Alto 800, Alto K10, EECO, Gypsy, Omni, and WagonR, ALL fail the safety test with flying colours. I would like to know what percentage these models make up of MS's total revenues.

The WagonR VXi (O) provides airbags for both, driver and co-driver. This variant also has ABS (which you rightly mentioned on your chart).
Could you please correct the chart? I guess this qualifies for the VXi (O) variant to pass the test.
I want to upload the e-brochure of Wagon-R to this post, for proof. But I am not sure how to attach files to post. Below is the link for the brochure:
http://www.vehicleades.com/downloads/wagonr.pdf

[TheLizardKing]

Originally Posted by Crazy_cars_guy

The WagonR VXi (O) provides airbags for both, driver and co-driver.

According to the official brochure (available here), only the driver's side airbag is provided in the VXi (O) variant. Is it a mistake in the brochure?

[rattanw]

Originally Posted by saket77

Lizard King, that is a very useful compilation of facts at one place. New car buyers should definitely have a look at the tables you have drawn. Very glad to see that safety is taking a front seat these days, not only on the forum, but in the outside world too.
Also, to be future proof and of course for their own safety, new car buyers should try to stretch their budget a little and get a car with all safety kit in place. Manufacturers on the other hand should try to keep the profitability on the safety components on the lower side, aiding the car buyers.

Thanks for coming up with it.
Regards,
Saket

+1 to the above post.

Thanks lizardking for this crisp analysis. Really taking time out to do something like this means a great deal.

IMHO, there are two parts that contribute to how safe a vehicle is under given circumstances. For obvious reasons, I would not include drivers' skills, road conditions and external factors like lighting, weather conditions etc.

1. Structural Integrity - really this is a no-brainer. I do not understand why can't our regulators make the structural integrity test and scoring a minimum rating in such test (lets say 3 out of a scale of 5) mandatory for any new vehicle to be sold and registered in India. This is by far the most important yet unseen, unheard feature that people rely on for their safety in the unfortunate event of a crash. If for example, a score of 3 out of 5 is made minimum standard, then a car model with score of 4 automatically becomes a premium product considering that Maruti / hyundai and the likes will stop at 3 at least for their top selling budget cars. Obviously there are a lot of factors in structural integrity like crumple zones, etc which also come in to play, but then that's the entire point of having standards - setting minimum acceptable limits.

2. In car safety features - ABS, SRS airbags, EBD, etc. these features aid a great deal in preventing an impact and upon impact minimizing the damage. Yet these are all supplemental systems, and also to an extent dependent on drivers' skills. Hence, while important they should not be considered as important as structural safety. Nevertheless, their presence should be mandatory as well.

Again in my opinion, both the above should be mandated by law. That's it. Why do we need to depend on the mercy of auto manufacturers who decide which car variant gets which features? There should be a standard base list of features as universal on all cars manufactured and sold in India. Yes, the cost burden will be passed to the consumer, but then isn't that the case when diesel prices go up and price of vegetables also goes up, or when steel prices go up and auto manufacturers pass on the increase to end consumer. Even so, there is limited scope for manufacturers raising price of individual models exorbitantly as the playing field is leveled and competition will be quick to take advantage of any unfair price hike (just a quick calculation will show that 60 - 70 % of total vehicles sold are in the sub 10 lac bucket which may be very sensitive to price hikes).

There are enough precedents on government stepping in to make regulations for auto manufacturers, it happened at the time when CNG was made mandatory for commercial vehicles plying in Delhi, it happened at the time BS IV standards were made mandatory, etc. Why not take the same approach for safety? Partially government has done its duty as a regulator, or at least begun with the right intent, by announcing mandatory safety features but without the entire package that may well be a case of too little too late.

[marsbhp]

Looks like one of the safest entry level cars is one that does not sell a lot... the Micra Active XV Safety. Good safety features for the money. Even the three pot mill is acceptable at this price point, I would say. However people seem to go in mostly for the unsafe variants of Maruti (VXi and VDi) and Hyundai (Magna, Sportz) and some go on to add more bling which would increase the price to more than this safer option.

[searacer932]

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing

Attachment 1306516

• The Amaze, Brio, and Mobilio, all offer the minimum safety kit in their top two variants.

Thanks for capturing the details.I am sure this thread is going to be referred numerous times by the actual buyers

One comment on the Brio's variants. I don't think we get ABS and air-bag in the 'V' trim of Brio. Request you to kindly check it.

[Crazy_cars_guy]

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing

According to the official brochure (available here), only the driver's side airbag is provided in the VXi (O) variant. Is it a mistake in the brochure?

I stand corrected. Maruti used to provide dual airbags until recently, but have removed co-driver airbag. Thanks @TheLizardKing.

[sumitgovil2311]

Amazing compilation, great post. This is why BHP is way ahead.

[marsbhp]

Originally Posted by Crazy_cars_guy

I stand corrected. Maruti used to provide dual airbags until recently, but have removed co-driver airbag. Thanks @TheLizardKing.

Hmm.... another case of going backwards Hyundai did it with Elite i20 missing some of the safety aids and rear disc brakes from the older i20.

[Seran Manian]

There is a very good article in Autocar india web site that gives a brief about the safety aspects implemented in cars and how they work.

The link is: http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...-391595.aspx/0

[Wanderers]

Hi

Please read the news in ET. Follow link below.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/45129600.cms.

This is a very serious indeed. A Toyota Fortuner airbag did not deploy, probably due to roll-over and no head on collusion. Owner has taken all the Toyota Kirloskar India Directors to Court for criminal liability and Court seems to be in agreement.

While there is a bit of exaggeration but this should go as eye opener for all the Automobile companies in India, who take us for granted, giving inferior products while catering to overseas market with better & safer cars.

[amit_purohit20]

Which are the top 3 cheapest Hatchbacks that have ABS, Airbags and good Structural integrity (read as good NCAP ratings if any)?

If someone has their prices also please let me know.

I suppose following cars can come in the above category:
1) Micra
2) Vista/Bolt
3) Punto
4) Polo

My friend is looking for petrol variant to reduce costs.

[marsbhp]

Originally Posted by amit_purohit20

Which are the top 3 cheapest Hatchbacks that have ABS, Airbags and good Structural integrity (read as good NCAP ratings if any)?

If someone has their prices also please let me know.

I suppose following cars can come in the above category:
1) Micra
2) Vista/Bolt
3) Punto
4) Polo

My friend is looking for petrol variant to reduce costs.

Ford Figo TITANIUM (Petrol) is a good option too. Other than the features your friend is looking for, it has got great dynamics too though it is a bit dated. Bolt has not yet been launched. It is expected only in 2015.