Volvo XC40, Ford Focus Shine in European Safety Tests

Volvo’s new small off-roader, the XC40, and the latest version of Ford’s small family car, the Focus, achieve maximum five-star safety ratings under tougher European New Car Assessment Program testing.

The XC40 scored 97% for adult occupant protection, putting it among the top five cars for this aspect of safety tested by Euro NCAP in the past three years.

But Euro NCAP says it is in the areas of active safety and vulnerable road user protection that both cars impress most.

Both the XC40 and the Focus are equipped with an autonomous emergency braking system that detects cyclists as well as pedestrians. The Volvo also has emergency lane-keeping technology that acts in emergency situations to help stop the car from leaving the road or being steered into the path of oncoming traffic.

Euro NCAP Secretary General Michiel van Ratingen welcomes the fact that both premium and volume-market automakers are responding to tough new requirements introduced this year by fitting technologies that will save lives.

“Technologies such as AEB and ELK deliver immediate safety benefits, but they are also enabling technologies for the autonomous vehicles of the future,” van Ratingen says in a news release.

Meantime, the Australasian New Car Assessment Program says both the XC40 and the Mazda CX-8 have earned five-star safety ratings – the first models to be tested and rated by ANCAP to the latest, most stringent assessment protocols.

ANCAP CEO James Goodwin says the hurdles have been raised significantly for vehicles tested from 2018.

“We now test and rate against four key pillars of assessment, and across these we have implemented a range of enhancements to encourage vehicle manufacturers to improve the active and passive safety elements of their models,” he says.