Chery bottom of class for crash-test safety
ZERO. That is the safety rating the Chinese-made Chery QQ3 scored in the first-ever independent crash test assessment of some of the most popular compact and small cars in South Africa.
The London-based Global NCAP (New Car Assessment Programme) and South Africa’s Automobile Association (AA) jointly released the star ratings of five small cars‚ which between them account for around 65% of all new cars sold in South Africa last year – the QQ3‚ Datsun Go+‚ Renault Sandero‚ Polo Vivo and Toyota Etios – the latter two being the country’s top-selling vehicles.
The top performer‚ and the second best-selling car in the country last month‚ was the Etios‚ scoring four stars for adult safety and three for child safety in the back seat.
“This is a life and death choice‚” Global NCAP secretary-general David Ward said.
“It is good to see a four-star result in these first ever African crash test ratings‚ but it’s extremely disappointing that there’s a zero-star car.”
South Africa has one of the highest car-accident fatality rates in the world – 14 071 people were killed on our roads last year.
Yet according to a recent news24.com survey‚ when asked whether crash test results would affect their next car purchase decision‚ 48% of respondents said price was more important than safety.
Ward described the QQ3 as sub-standard and unsafe‚ in stark contrast to how Chery South Africa‚ a division of McCarthy Limited‚ describes it on its website: “Chery prides itself on manufacturing robust‚ reliable vehicles to ensure that you’re safe for the whole journey.”
Ward said: “Such a poor result shows why it is so important for countries like South Africa to fully apply the UN’s crash test standards – which currently isn’t happening.
“A car like the QQ3 simply shouldn’t be on sale anywhere in the world.
“When a country has very low regulated safety standards‚ there’s an incentive for motor manufacturers to undercut their competitors on price [by sacrificing safety]‚” he said.
“Consumers need clear‚ comparative crash test information to help inform purchase decisions.”
All five cars‚ base models in each case‚ had crash test dummies strapped into them‚ representing two adults in the front and two small children in the back‚ before being driven at 64km/h into a barrier simulating a car of similar size and weight.
The Renault Sandero was rated three stars for adult safety and four for children‚ making it the safest for children of the five cars.
Sales figures from industry body Naamsa reveal that Toyota sold 2 059 Etios models last month and Renault sold 442 Sanderos.
The Polo Vivo – still the country’s top seller‚ with sales of 2 851 last month – scored three stars for both adult and child safety‚ ahead of the Datsun GO‚ which got a one-star rating for adult protection and two stars for that of children in the back.
Both the Chery and the Datsun were found to have unstable body shells.
Global NCAP raised the alarm about the Datsun GO’s body shell three years ago‚ around the time the vehicle went on sale in South Africa.
It had urged Nissan (which owns the Datsun brand) to withdraw the GO from sale in South Africa and other markets. It was not‚ and currently more than 700 GOs are sold here every month‚ many of them to certain car rental companies.