Skoda Octavia Smashes Euro NCAP Safety Assessment

• Skoda Octavia secures five stars in the Euro NCAP crash test. 
• Has all the safety features of India model plus ADAS.
• Adult and Child protection was good, while it fared adequately in Vulnerable Road Users section. 

The Skoda Octavia, which is currently on sale in India, has passed the Euro NCAP crash test and as expected, the premium model has aced the test with a five-star rating. Though the estate version has been crash-tested by Euro NCAP, these results will apply for the saloon, which is on sale in India, too. 

The Octavia used in the crash test had almost all the safety kit that’s present in the India-spec car, including eight airbags, electronic stability control, ISOFIX child-seat mounts and a tyre pressure monitoring system. Plus, this being an international model, it was also decked with all ADAS features not yet offered in the Indian model. 

Coming to the scores, the Octavia secured 86 per cent in Adult Occupant Protection (AOP), 84 per cent in Child Occupant Protection (COP), 81 per cent in Safety Assists (SA), and 68 per cent for Vulnerable Road Users (VRU). Its passenger compartment was rated stable. 

Adult Occupant Protection 

In the frontal offset test, the Octavia offered good protection to both the front occupants’ knees and femurs. However, the driver’s chest had marginal protection only. Euro NCAP also put the Octavia through the full width rigid barrier test, where all critical body areas had good and adequate protection for the front and rear passengers. 

Where the estate aced was in the side barrier test, giving good protection for all important areas of the dummy. All the headrests were also able to protect the dummies’ heads from whiplash. 

The report also stated that the estate had good control of excursion, where an occupant is thrown to the other side of the vehicle in case of a crash. It also had a system to control such movements in the case of a crash. 

Child Occupant Protection

The Octavia is off to a slightly poor start in COP as the protection to the necks of the dummies was marginal in the frontal offset test. And, in the side barrier test, chest protection was rated as poor. However, protection offered to all other body areas were rated as good. The saloon also allows the disabling of the front co-driver airbag, so you can fit a rearward-facing child seat in the co-driver seat. 

Safety Assists And Vulnerable Road Users 

Euro NCAP tested the saloon’s Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) and Lane Departure Warning (LDW), both of which performed well in the tests. The latter also steers the car into the lane if it was found drifting away. And when it comes to VRU, protection to the pedestrian’s head was good and adequate, with the result being marginal only near the windscreen pillars. Euro NCAP also added that the AEB performed well in case of detecting a pedestrian as well. 

Skoda Octavia India Price And Rivals 

In India, the Skoda Octavia costs between Rs 27.35 lakh and Rs 30.45 lakh (ex-showroom), and is offered here as a petrol-only model. The Octavia is the only car in its segment and enjoys no rivalry in the country. Internationally though, it faces competition from the Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra.