So far, it was the Tata Nexon compact-SUV which was considered as the safest car in India, in the compact-SUV segment. Now, Mahindra has gone one up with the crash test rating for their XUV300. Global NCAP has granted a top 5-star rating for the XUV300 with a combined score higher than the Tata Nexon. Also, Global NCAP revealed that the XUV300 is the first Indian car to score such high points during crash tests among all other cars tested so far for the Indian market. The XUV300 from Mahindra is the first Indian car to score a 4-star rating for child safety and the side impact rating also has been the highest so far.
The crash tested vehicle was a right-hand-drive Mahindra XUV300 in a 5-door compact-SUV form with a weight of 1637 kg when crashed and the impact was at 64 kmph. Overall, the body shell of the Mahindra XUV300 was rated as stable to keep occupants safe. This sub-4 metre SUV scored 16.42 / 17 for adult passenger safety and 37.44 / 49 for child safety.
Features on the safety front offered with the Mahindra XUV300 include 7-airbags, all 4 disc brakes, front parking sensors, heated ORVMs, ESP with dynamic steering torque, Brake Assist, Roll-over Mitigation, traction control, hill start assist, ABS with EBD, front & rear fog lamps, ISOFIX, TPMS, seat belt reminder for all seats and 3-point seat belt for all seats.
When crash tested, the XUV300 offered good protection to the driver and front passengers neck. The driver chest also received adequate protection while the front passenger got good protection in this department. For knees, there was good protection for the driver and front passenger. There was adequate protection for driver feet and the body shell was rated as stable which could take further load in an event of a crash. The car also cleared the Side impact regulation UN95.
For child safety, the 3 year old dummy on ISOFIX top tether prevented unwanted forward movement offering fair protection to chest area. The 18 month old dummy with ISOFIX and support leg received good protection. There was no incompatibility noticed from the CRSs recommended.