Kia Carens Puts Up An Average Show In Crash Tests, Standard Six Airbags Don't Offer Much Help

Global NCAP has rated the MPV’s bodyshell integrity and footwell area as ‘unstable’

• The Carens got three stars for both adult and child occupant safety.

• It scored 9.30/17 points and 30.99/49 points for adult and child protection, respectively.

• Standard safety features include six airbags, electronic stability control and child seat anchorages.

• Its platform sibling, the Seltos, had also scored a similar 3-star rating, but with lower scores.

Kia’s newest MPV, the Carens, has been crash-tested by Global NCAP and it has received an average three stars for both adult and child passenger safety. This is surely a bit disappointing as back in February 2022, an internal document had hinted at a four-star rating for the Kia MPV. It is the second 3-star rating for a Kia model, following the Seltos.

The Carens was tested in the base-spec Premium trim which comes with multiple safety features as standard including six airbags, electronic stability control, ISOFIX child seat anchorages, ABS with EBD, all four disc brakes, and vehicle stability management. However, the MPV gets a lap belt for the middle-rear occupant instead of a proper three-point seatbelt.

In the detailed report, Global NCAP rated the body shell integrity and footwell areas as ‘unstable’ when crash-tested at 64kmph and it cannot withstand further loadings. The Kia MPV was also side-impact crash-tested and it met all the necessary requirements.

Alejandro Furas, Secretary General of Global NCAP said, “Global NCAP welcomes Kia’s decision to make six airbags a standard fit in the Carens ahead of a regulatory requirement. However, we expected a better performance from this model. It remains a cause for concern that global car brands such as Kia, that normally achieve 5 star ratings in other markets, are still not reaching this level in India.”

Here’s a look at how its crash test scores compare with those of the Seltos:

As it’s clearly evident from the above table, the Carens fared slightly better than its platform sibling, the Seltos in both adult and child safety. However, the bodyshell integrity of both models were rated ‘unstable’. Do note that while both the Kia cars were tested in their base-spec variants, the Carens had more safety standard equipment compared to the Seltos such as side and curtain airbags and ISOFIX child seat anchorages.

Adult Occupant Protection

The Carens received three stars for adult occupant protection, scoring a poor 9.30 points out of 17. It offered ‘good’ protection to the head and neck of both driver and co-driver. Also, while protection to the driver’s chest was labelled ‘marginal’, the same was ‘good’ for the co-driver. Both their knees received ‘marginal’ protection. The driver’s tibias got ‘adequate and good’ protection, while cover for the co-driver’s tibias was adjudged ‘good’.

Child Occupant Protection

In child occupant protection, the MPV got the same three-star score as well. It achieved 30.99 out of 49 points. The child seat for the 3-year-old dummy was facing forward but it could not prevent forward jerking of the head while also offering ‘poor’ and ‘fair’ protection to the head and chest, respectively. On the other hand, the child seat for the one-and-half-year-old dummy was facing rearward, and it provided 'good' protection to the head and chest.

The global safety organisation has revealed that it will be updating its assessment protocols, starting July 2022, which will include side impact, electronic stability control (ESC), and pedestrian protection requirements.

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