Hyundai Kona, Holden Equinox awarded five ANCAP stars, MG ZS receives four

The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) handed out a four-star safety rating to the MG ZS last week, while the Hyundai Kona and Holden Equinox impressed with five stars.

The ZS compact SUV scored 31.46 out of 37 points – or 85 per cent – in the 'Occupant Protection' category, encountering issues in the frontal offset at 64km/h crash test.

'Acceptable' protection was provided for the driver's chest and lower legs, as well as their left upper leg, while the right upper leg had 'marginal' protection. 

Insufficient inflation of the passenger airbag caused the dummy head to bottom out, with a penalty applied for such, leading to a 10.46 out of 16 for the test.

The side impact at 50km/h (16 out of 16) and oblique pole at 32km/h (two out of two) crash tests returned perfect results, as did a check of the MG's seatbelt reminders. 'Good' whiplash protection was offered during these tests.

Meanwhile, 26.55 out of 36 points – or 73.8 per cent – were totalled in the 'Pedestrian Protection' category, with overall protection rated as 'acceptable'.

The Kona compact SUV excelled in the 'Occupant Protection' category, scoring 35.07 out of 37 points – or 94.8 per cent.

'Poor' results were recorded along the base of the windscreen, on the A-pillars and at the edge of the bonnet, while mostly 'good' protection was provided elsewhere.

Dual front, side and curtain airbags are standard, while auto emergency braking and lane support systems are not available.

The four-star rating applies to all ZS variants sold from this month onwards.

Comparatively, the Kona compact SUV excelled in the 'Occupant Protection' category, scoring 35.07 out of 37 points – or 94.8 per cent – to edge out the Equinox mid-size SUV which totalled a 34.21 out of 37 – or 92.5 per cent.

However, the Equinox (14.21 out of 16) outscored the Kona (14.07 out of 16) in the frontal offset at 64km/h crash test, with both offering 'acceptable' protection of the driver's chest.

The Kona and Equinox managed the same 'acceptable' assessment in the 'Pedestrian Protection' category.

The former also provided 'acceptable' protection of the driver and passenger's lower legs, while the latter had 'acceptable' protection of the passenger's chest and left lower leg, and driver's right lower leg.

Nevertheless, the Kona countered with a perfect result in the side impact at 50km/h crash test (16 out of 16), while the Equinox mustered a 15 out of 16 score, with a penalty applied for 'acceptable' driver head protection.

Specifically, the curtain airbag became trapped behind the C-pillar trim, which prevented its full deployment in the second row.

Both models received full points for the oblique pole at 32km/h (two out of two) crash test and their seatbelt reminders (three out of three), while whiplash protection during testing was 'good'.

The Equinox (14.21 out of 16) outscored the Kona (14.07 out of 16) in the frontal offset at 64km/h crash test.

Similarly, the Kona and Equinox managed the same 'acceptable' assessment in the 'Pedestrian Protection' category, with the former totalling 24.60 out of 36 points – or 68.3 per cent – while the latter tallied a 26.95 out of 36 – or 74.9 per cent.

The SUV pair recorded 'poor' readings on their windscreen bases, A-pillars and rear bonnet edges, alongside mixed returns for their bonnets. All other areas offered predominately 'good' protection.

The Hyundai and Holden are equipped with dual front, side and curtain airbags as standard. Auto emergency braking and lane support systems are available on some Equinox variants, contrasted against the Kona which provides these features as an option on the base variant.

This five-star rating applies to all Equinox and Kona variants sold from this month and September onwards respectively. 

Testing for all three SUV models was conducted by ANCAP locally.

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