Euro NCAP’s latest round of safety tests has resulted in the Volkswagen Beetle and Volkswagen up! models both achieving the maximum five stars. The Volkswagen Beetle particularly impressed the testers at Euro NCAP for achieving remarkable results in the area of child occupant protection, reaching 90%, which is the maximum score Euro NCAP has yet given for this assessment. The Beetle scored 92% for adult occupant protection, 90% for child occupant protection and 53% for pedestrian protection. It scored 86% for its safety assist systems, which include Electronic Stability Control as standard fitting.
Despite its diminutive size, the Volkswagen up! performed incredibly well in the safety tests, scoring 89% for adult occupancy safety, 80% for child occupancy safety, 46% for pedestrian safety and also achieved 86% for its safety assist systems, which include Electronic Stability Control and the Volkswagen City Emergency Brake, both of which will be standard in Ireland.
The City Emergency Brake on the up! was singled out for special praise. The emergency system which employs a laser sensor, is designed to help a driver avoid a low-speed crash or to reduce its severity. This system was rewarded as part of Euro NCAP’s Advanced mission to reward advanced systems.
Adam Chamberlain, Head of Sales & Marketing, Volkswagen Ireland, commented “We are delighted with the Euro NCAP results for both Beetle and up!, both of these cars have fun personalities, but they take themselves very seriously when it comes to safety. We are particularly pleased with the highest-ever child protection score for Beetle and that given the up!’s compact dimensions it has still achieved a maximum five-star result in NCAP’s newer, more stringent tests.”
