Team-BHP - Global NCAP tests Kia Seltos, i10 Nios and S-Presso. All three perform badly

Global NCAP has tested three cars sold in the Indian market. The results are as follows Kia Seltos 3 stars, Grand i10 Nios 2 stars and Maruti Suzuki S Presso 0 stars.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=neVAP1UCG0E
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VsFE9JyfjXs
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OPjqzRhTz-0
I am really surprised that the Kia Seltos performed so poorly, was expecting atleast 4 stars. Also an extra airbag in the i10 couldn't help it earn an extra star over the Santro which also got 2 stars with a single airbag. Therefore the same rating can be expected for the new i20, Venue and Sonet based on the same K1 platform.

Tata and Mahindra indeed deserve a lot of respect from us for providing safe cars at competitive prices at a time when the market leaders give safety the least priority. Tata Tiago which costs a third of Seltos performed better in the tests.

This should serve as an eye opener for most of the people who assumed the Koreans to be sufficiently safe because the "sheet metal does not flex on pressing" All the three cars have an Unstable bodyshell.
The detailed fact sheet for all the 3 cars have been attached:

Quote:

Originally Posted by PetrolheadRup (Post 4928294)

This should serve as an eye opener for most of the people who assumed the Koreans to be sufficiently safe because the "sheet metal does not flex on pressing"

That hardly is the measure to determine safety. I believe even the Scorpio which has much thicker sheet metal than the so called tin cans had a 0 or poor crash test record.

S-Presso getting 0 stars was to be expected. No real surprises there.

Nios getting 2 stars is also not too surprising.

The real bummer is the Seltos getting only 3 stars. Such a premium and expensive car should be doing much better than this. Very disappointed with this showing. This result would also apply to the Creta too.

Hyundai is known to have different (read lower) standards for India specific models and hence this doesn’t come as a surprise. As long as people keep buying these blindly we shouldn’t expect any change in their attitude. They are here for business and will stick to whatever method gives them highest ROI. So mostly Creta will perform similarly?
Even the ‘now’ popular Sonet would have similar result considering it can’t be superior to the more expensive Seltos.

Request mods to highlight this point in BOLD in the official reviews. The way in TATA vehicles it’s mentioned ‘service is a hit or miss’, Hyundai/Kia vehicle reviews should have ‘safety is questionable’. Shameful to see 20L cars being rated structurally unstable. Shame on Hyundai/Kia :deadhorse

Kudos to Tata and Mahindra for making safer cars clap:

Can be assumed then that Creta isn't any better as well. Absolutely pathetic from the two biggest companies in India. :deadhorse

Even with all the major quality issues with Hyundai - Kia cars (1, 2 and 3), I (and many others too) have been giving them the benefit of the doubt thanks to the fantastic engine range and kit, including safety kit.

But expensive products such as Seltos barely getting 3 stars is completely unfathomable. It's a 21L car for the top end, and they couldn't even achieve a 4-star? Never recommending one again unless they change their ways!

Thanks to Global NCAP for revealing the truth behind Maruti and Hyundai, as always. The new Creta / Seltos platform is designed for two African elephants to stand on it, not to help owners survive a crash! Sounds like someone has their priorities all wrong. :Frustrati

Global NCAP tests Kia Seltos, i10 Nios and S-Presso. All three perform badly-images-1.jpeg

Pay 2 million+ and get an unstable structure. I was hoping that at least the body shell would be strong enough to protect the occupants when the most important safety system - brakes stop working which is known to happen in the Seltos. I think it'd be safe to expect the same for Creta. Wouldn't be wrong to assume that the cheaper Sonet and Venue would fare as bad or worse.

Won't matter and they'll still keep making bank with our countrymen lining up for gizmos. For me, the only safe Korean to consider would be the SsangYong Tivoli aka XUV300.

Quote:

"The protection offered to the driver and passenger head was adequate, both passenger and driver head bottomed out the airbags."

Looks like the airbag system too isn't capable of softening an impact stronger than this

Folks who are underwhelmed about the 3* rating of Seltos, please consider this as well:

Adult Occupation Protection Score between 5 & 8 is 2 stars
Adult Occupation Protection Score between 8 & 11 is 3 stars

Seltos scored 8.03 out of maximum of 17 for Adult Occupation Protection. So, just about 3 stars :Frustrati

Regarding Grand i10 Nios and SPresso :deadhorse

Well there goes KIA Sonet off my list (was thinking of booking the HTK+ DCT within the year). I would have been fine with a 4 star rating but 3 stars is just too poor for a Seltos (that too with an unstable body remark! That is shocking to say the least). I can't possibly expect the Sonet to do better.

I guess it has to be the TATA Nexon. Pity, really didn't want to go for an AMT.

Also, KIA/Hyundia - Please stop bragging about all that shiny new high tensile strength steel that you are adding to your cars. Either that is all hogwash or your engineers are morons who can't design a car that meets basic passenger car safety standards.

Edit: Can't thank GNCAP enough for doing what they are doing! I had just recommended Kia Sonet HTX Diesel Manual/TATA Nexon Diesel Manual to my old colleague (recently became a father) last Saturday. While doing so, I clearly told him that only Nexon and XUV3OO are known for their safety. Just updated him on this and requested him to drop Sonet from his consideration too.

Edit 2: Request the mods to update the reviews (or even the short driving impressions where reviews are not up yet) so that people know what they are getting into. Imagine getting your dream car towards the end of the year only to realize that you are getting Maruti level safety after paying twice the amount.

This is sad. These are India's biggest manufacturers and they need to be held responsible for the safety of their customers.

Expected nothing better from S-presso and i10 Nios, but the Seltos at 3 Stars is seriously disappointing. I remember reading that the US spec Seltos had very good safety ratings, but as expected Kia/Hyundai will not focus on safety for the Indian market. The Autocar article says "Its structure was rated as a borderline case unstable."

Sad to see but not surprising at all.

Of course, do not expect any impact on sales because most car buyers in India today are bothered about Bling, touchscreens, sunroofs and features on most cars and budget buyers are concerned only about mileage. That's where Maruti and Hyundai/Kia get the sales.

Now I expect even the new gen and ‘lighter’ i20 to perform similarly! I guess Hyundai-Kia are focusing more on features and gizmos rather than safety of their passengers/owners.

We have been blaming Maruti for tincans but I believe now Hyundai should also be added to the list, for their sub-par results and fooling us Indians by saying we are using “73% High strength steel” and so on and so forth in our cars!

I am not very surprised at how Kia and Hyundai have performed. If they were really confident on their test ratings, they would have openly flaunted them in ads (just like Mahindra XUV300 & Tata Nexon and others). Hyundai has better marketing skills and has not given proper attention towards the crash aspect. I am also generally surprised by looking at various reviews (video) of products from Kia and Hyundai, not a mention of how safe the car is. Maruti of course doesn't need a mention here. With safety being paramount, I really pity the India makers who are not able to cash in on what could be their biggest strength - safety!