2020 Mahindra Thar secured four stars in adult occupant and child occupant protection tests conducted by Global NCAP
Let us clear this out first! Every NCAP organisation has own set of regulations and a result achieved in one place cannot be substituted to the other. But, they are relatable in a number of ways. Global NCAP assessment is mainly based on front offset crash tests while Euro NCAP conducts front offset, side-impact, side pole, full frontal and other tests.
Under the #SaferCarsForIndia campaign, Global NCAP evaluated the new generation Mahindra Thar and awarded it four stars. Nearly two years ago, the Jeep Wrangler was tested by Euro NCAP along with eight other models and it disappointed with a single star. It came as a surprise for many as the off-roader was brand new for that model year.
The tested vehicle had front airbags, side head airbags, side chest airbags, seatbelt reminder, and driver set speed limiter. Euro NCAP stated that the connection between the A-pillar and the trans-facia beam was damaged as the structure would be unable to withstand higher loads and the deformation of the footwell showed that the structure had reached its limit of integrity.
In the full-width rigid barrier test, the chest compression showed marginal protection to the driver. In comparison, the second generation Mahindra Thar did fare better in every aspect as getting four stars indicates the structural rigidity of the homegrown off-roader, as compared to just one star for the Wrangler. It was tested in its basic safety specification of two airbags.
It reached four stars for adult and as many for child occupants while meeting the side impact UN 95 regulation. The driver and passenger’s head and neck sections showed good protection while the former’s chest offered adequate protection and the latter’s showed good protection as well. The structure was rated as stable but the same couldn’t be said for the footwell area.
Global NCAP found that the adult knee areas were optimised to reduce significant injuries and both child occupants received almost full protection as the Thar comes with standard ISOFIX anchorages and top tether together with three-point belts.