Citroen C3 Scores 0 Stars In Latin NCAP Crash Tests

Its bodyshell was rated as ‘unstable’ and was declared incapable of withstanding further loadings

When the Citroen C3 was announced for India, it was also revealed that the crossover-hatch will be offered in the Latin markets including Brazil. The C3 is made in both India and Brazil, and now the Latin NCAP has crash-tested the one made in the South American nation. However, the Citroen cross-hatch failed to score even a single-star rating in the assessments.

Safety Equipment On Board

The C3 that was crash-tested was equipped with dual front airbags and electronic stability control (ESC) as standard. Other safety tech on board consisted of seatbelt reminder and ISOFIX child seat anchorages. Although it didn’t have seatbelt pretensioners, the Brazil-spec C3 did have seatbelt load limiters.

On the India-spec C3, dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, reverse parking sensors and front seatbelt reminders are provided as standard. Citroen has also equipped it with electronic stability programme (ESP), hill-hold assist, and tyre pressure monitoring system, but only on the turbo-petrol variants.

ADULT OCCUPANT PROTECTION

The crossover-hatch scored 31 percent (12.21 points) in adult occupation protection. This includes the overall scores from both frontal and side-impact crash tests.

Frontal Impact

The protection offered to the driver and passenger’s head and neck was ‘good’, while the driver´s chest showed ‘weak’ protection and the passenger chest showed ‘marginal’ protection. Their knees showed ‘marginal’ protection overall, with only the passenger’s left knee showing ‘good’ protection. Both the driver and passenger’s tibias showed ‘adequate’ protection. The C3’s footwell area and bodyshell were rated as ‘unstable’ with the latter being incapable of withstanding further loadings. Furthermore, the seat design showed poor protection to the neck from whiplash.

Side Impact

In the side-impact test, the protection offered to the head and chest was ‘adequate’, while that for the abdomen and pelvis was recorded to be ‘good.’ 

The C3’s side-pole impact test was not performed as it doesn’t offer side head protection, even as optional.

Also Read: Citroen eC3 vs Tata Tiago EV: Space & Practicality Comparison

CHILD OCCUPANT PROTECTION

The Citroen C3 got 12 percent in child occupant protection. Here’s the breakdown:

Frontal Impact

Both child seats for the 3-year-old and the 1.5-year-old dummies were installed rearward facing using ISOFIX anchorages. It was capable of preventing head exposure and offered ‘good’ protection for the 3-year old. The younger child’s seat prevented head contact with the interior of the car. 

Side Impact

Both the child restraint systems (CRS) were able to offer full protection during the side impact.

The biggest deduction for the Citroen C3 came in the form of the Dynamic Score where it was penalised for poor markings for the ISOFIX anchorages. It also did not offer an airbag warning when a CRS is installed in the front passenger seat. All seating positions are equipped with 3-point seatbelts.

PEDESTRIAN PROTECTION

The C3 obtained a comparatively higher result of 50 percent (23.88 points) in pedestrian protection. It showed the majority of areas with ‘good’, ‘marginal’ and ‘adequate’ protection levels. But it scored poorly for head protection around the windscreen and A-pillars. The Citroen C3’s upper leg protection score was rated to be overall ‘adequate to good’; lower leg protection, however, was deemed to be ‘marginal to good.’

SAFETY ASSIST

The Latin NCAP’s crash test result showed 35 percent (15 points) for the safety assist of the crossover-hatch. Here, it is penalised for a lack of features deemed important for safety as per the testing agency.

Citroen has equipped the Brazil-spec C3 with seatbelt reminder only for the driver which is not enough to meet the Latin NCAP requirements. While the crossover-hatch also gets ESC as standard to meet their standards, it misses out on advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), and neither does the Brazil-spec C3 have any speed limitation device.

Also Read: Citroen Is Bringing A Crossover Sedan To India

Citroen C3 In India

The C3 was launched in India in mid-2022 as the second model from Citroen. This model has not yet been tested by any NCAP agency but could be assigned a rating once the Bharat NCAP comes into effect towards the end of 2023. The Citroen C3 is sold in three broad variants – Live, Feel and Shine – priced between Rs 6.16 lakh and Rs 8.92 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

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