FIA Discusses Euro NCAP Development

Publication date: 15 January 2008

The FIA, one of the founding members of Euro NCAP, recently held a conference titled “Euro NCAP, Beyond 5 Stars” to discuss and debate the future development of the European New Car Assessment programme.

Belgian Minister of State Herman De Croo immediatally started the debate by recalling that "this organization which distributes stars is a neutral and independent body that plays a very important role. However, a car that limits the consequences of an accident is not the ultimate goal. Euro NCAP should not only address technologies that mitigate the consequences of an accident, but also technologies that help prevent accidents from happening in the first place."

Thierry Willemarck, CEO of the Touring Club of Belgium, recalled the high importance of crash testing for increasing the safety of modern vehicles. “Motoring clubs won an important battle when car manufacturers started to use the crash test results to promote their products,” he said. Speaking about the many challenges that lie ahead, he stressed that “design compatibility will be the next challenge we need to address.”

In the following Willemarck also stressed that road safety is a key priority for motoring clubs and congratulated car manufacturers on the tremendous progress made in vehicle safety since the beginning of the programme, highlighting the fact that crashworthiness and Euro NCAP results have become a part of product advertisement by car makers. He recalled that the TCB used to focus on the protection of pedestrians in traffic and pointed out that a lot still needs to be done to improve pedestrian protection in the event of a collision with a car.

Ari Vatanen, member of the European Parliament, taking a more general approach to road safety, remarked that if a transport minister who lost a son or a daughter might adopt a more decisive approach. "If you have to talk at the funeral of a beloved, it is much more difficult than making political speeches," he said.

Vatanen also referred to the crash test of the Brilliance carried out by the ADAC, saying the vehicle needed to be a high priority and that this had nothing to do with protectionism. "Mobility is a key driver of economic wealth. We need only to reduce the downsides," he stressed.

Euro NCAP has accelerated the improvement of the passive safety of passenger cars over the last decade. Euro NCAP has become the design standard for car manufacturers. In addition it provides good information for consumers and has made them more conscious. The tremendous improvements in passive vehicle safety were recalled by the recent ADAC crash tests of two Chinese cars, the Landwind at the end of 2005 and the Brilliance in 2007. Both cars showed very bad safety performance which was demonstrated at the conference by Wilfried Klanner, technical director at ADAC’s Landsberg Test Centre.

Referring to the global character of the car industry, ACEA Regulator Affairs Director Wolfgang Reinhardt said it would be preferable for the industry to have tests that are globally harmonised. "We know that if a car is tested in the USA it can get one star while the same car tested in Europe could get four, so that's a problem," he said. "Establishing global criteria could be helpful."

Euro NCAP has been discussing active safety for some time, and says all new cars should be fitted with Electronic Stability Control (ESC) as soon as possible . Former Euro NCAP Secretary General Adrian Hobbs referred to a comprehensive study carried out by Euro NCAP about the availability of ESC on new cars , stating that “ESC should be installed on all cars as a standard.”

EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media Viviane Reding promised in May 2007 to make ESC mandatory on cars at the launch of the “Choose ESC” campaign chaired by the FIA Foundation .

Adrian Hobbs stressed that "consumer information is a key part of the equation to improve road safety." He highlighted pedestrian protection and child safety. Explaining the different frontal impact tests carried out in different world regions, Hobbs said developing a full width frontal impact test in Europe would address the important issue of crash compatibility of different size vehicles. He also referred to FIA President Max Mosley's call for fitting ESC on all new cars.

Another issue addressed in the context of the future of crash-testing was the importance of whiplash injuries. Apart from human misery, whiplash is a huge financial burden for insurance companies and because it can not be proven medically there is, unfortunately, misuse. The FIA welcomes the long-awaited Euro NCAP whiplash test procedure that probably will be implemented in 2008. The procedure will establish the performance of car seats and their restraints in rear impact collisions.

Willemarck said by creating organisations like Euro NCAP, EuroTAP  and EuroRAP , motoring clubs have created a market for safety that did not exist. Such consumer protection work by clubs needs to continue as a key element for clubs in years to come.

Olivier Lenz (o.lenz@fiabrussels.com)