Chinese car manufacturers dominate Euro NCAP crash tests, signaling new era in automotive safety

Do you recall a period when Chinese automobiles would crumple like tin cans in European crash tests? For instance, in 2006, the Brilliance BS6 struggled with a score of just one star out of a possible five in a crash test. However, those days are behind us. The Chinese have since raised the bar and eliminated such errors.

In 2023, the Euro NCAP put 17 new models through its stringent tests, with 9 out of these models originating from China. The large number of Chinese models included in these tests demonstrates the significant growth of Chinese automakers in Europe, making this year unparalleled in the history. It is likely that this trend will continue in the coming years. Another sign of changing times: the majority of the models tested were not gas-powered. Interestingly, one of the tested models was from Vietnam - the Vinfast VF8.

So, how did the Chinese cars perform? They all earned a high score of five stars. The honor for European manufacturers was upheld by the Volkswagen ID.7, which achieved the highest percentage score - meeting 88.2 percent of Euro NCAP's safety requirements. However, the Nio ET5 achieved an equally outstanding overall rating. In third place was the Smart #3, which scored 87.0 percent. Only three cars - the Honda ZR-V, Hyundai Kona, and Vinfast VF8 - earned four stars.