These days, whenever a new SUV is launched, people first pay attention to its safety rating rather than its features and mileage. After all, no matter how attractive a car is, if it fails to protect passengers in an accident, its value is halved. Recently, Bharat NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) crash tested two popular compact SUVs, the Citroen Aircross and the Maruti Victoris. Both achieved 5-star ratings, but some interesting differences were revealed in the scoring. Let’s find out which car performed best in which test.
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Adult Occupant Protection
Both SUVs performed brilliantly in the Adult Occupant Protection (AOP) test. Citroen Aircross scored 27.05/32 points while Maruti Victoris scored a near-perfect 31.66/32. This means that Victoris provided better protection to the head, neck and chest of the front passengers.
In the Frontal offset deformable barrier test, Aircross provided “Good” protection to the head and neck of the driver and co-driver, but the driver’s chest got only “Marginal” rating and the co-driver’s chest got “Adequate” rating. Whereas Victoris provided excellent protection to the head, neck and even parts like pelvis and tibia.
Child Occupant Protection
Now comes the matter of child safety i.e. COP (Child Occupant Protection). Aircross scored 40/49 points while Victoris won with 43/49 points.
Both the SUVs were tested with 18 month and 3 year old dummies sitting on rear-facing child seats. Both got full marks in Dynamic score (front and side impact) – which means the protection of children from frontal and side crashes is quite strong. The difference was seen in Vehicle Assessment Score, where Aircross got only 4/13 points while Victoris got 7/13 points. Due to this, Aircross got 4-stars in child safety and Victoris got full 5-stars.
Side Impact Test
Both SUVs performed well in the side movable deformable barrier and side pole tests. Both provided “Good” protection to critical body parts. This means that if the SUV is hit from the side, both vehicles offer approximately equal protection to passengers.
Safety Features
Now, in terms of features, the Citroen Aircross comes with basic safety features like six airbags (standard), ABS with EBD, ESC, ISOFIX child seat mounts, TPMS, and rear parking sensors.
The Maruti Victoris has all of these features, but also includes advanced features like a 360-degree camera, all-wheel disc brakes, and a Level-2 ADAS suite (in some variants). Clearly, the Victoris offers a more powerful package than the Aircross in terms of features.
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Price Comparison
In terms of pricing, the Citroen Aircross is priced between ₹8.32 lakh and ₹14.1 lakh. The Maruti Victoris, on the other hand, is priced between ₹10.50 lakh and ₹19.99 lakh.
While the Victoris is slightly more expensive, its safety features and high crash test scores justify its price. The Aircross, on the other hand, is more affordable and still offers a good safety package.