Which Vehicle Crash test are mandatory for India?

Crash tests are important for the proof of the safety of a vehicle. Recent news about the 0 safety ratings on the Maruti Spresso and clearance which has been given by Maruti has created a question in the mind of many readers. If you haven’t been following what has happened click the link here to get an idea – SPresso gets 0 stars in Global NCAP. In this article, we clarify which Indian Vehicle crash test is mandatory and how is different from the GNCAP.

Safety features

Vehicles come with features like ABS, ESP, airbags, power windows, Dead pedals and perimeter alarms. All these features have some safety features in them. Basically, there are 2 types of safety – Preventive safety and post-crash safety.

Preventive Safety

Preventive safety includes everything from ABS, ESP, electronic brake distribution, traction control, wheelie control and AI-assisted braking and radar-based technology. These features have only ABS as mandatory and this shows the lack of preventive safety compulsion. The barrier with this is that all this technology has high development cost along with the high manufacturing cost it just makes the cars more expensive. Manufacturers cut on these for their base models so as to minimize the price.

Post Crash Safety

Post-crash safety includes airbags, strong chassis, Automatic SOS and other features that are there to save your life when a crash occurs. These features do nothing buy just remaining in the car while you drive around.

Vehicle safety test

A crash test is a collision of the vehicle in a controlled environment in order to assess their safety. The impact test is used to analyze the safety at different velocities. The Central Government had enforced crash test norms in the country in 2015. the norms were mandatory for all cars from October 2017 and they were at par with the UN standards. A safety rating scheme based on stars is also given by the BNCSAP (Bharat New Car Safety Assessment Programme).

Mandatory for India

The mandatory Indian Vehicle Crash test crash tests to be performed in India are offset frontal collision test and lateral collision test. These tests are performed at the testing centres at Indore (NATRAX), Pune (ARAI), Manesar (iCAT), and Chennai (GARC), which have been set up under the National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project.

Offset frontal test is performed by colliding a vehicle moving at a minimum speed of 56 km/h. against a deformable aluminium barrier. The thickness is standard and the dummies are placed inside the car to measure the damage. Different criteria based on the intensity of damage inflicted upon different parts of the human body have been drafted. The impact is measured on different parts of the Dummy.

There is a difference between BNCSAP and the GNCAP standards of the test even though the tests are the same in the procedure. It has even been stated in the parliament that the assessment by NCAP is voluntary and that there is no provision under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules for compliance with these protocols. The NCAP test is carried out at a speed of 64 km per hour, higher than what is prescribed in the Indian rules implying that even though cars pass the Indian tests, it may fail in the global NCAP.

What is mandatory?

Passenger cars should have seat belt reminder, manual override, speed alert, vehicle reverse gear sensor. Now it also makes ABS, airbags, and seatbelt pre-tensioners compulsory. Strict implementation of these regulations is necessary. Also having more of the preventive measure is important than having post-crash safety.

MoRTH has stated in a press release that it has plans to make the Automotive industry on par with other developed nations. The shift from BS6 to BS4 was also a part of this. The ministry stated that it will also make Electronic stability control systems and brake assists systems over 2 years. This step shows their approach to preventive safety measures.

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