The perfect accident

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The perfect accident

Honeywill, Tristan

It is rare for a new car to perform badly in the European New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) tests these days. At the other end of the scale, there is far more competition. Cars with five-star adult occupant scores are becoming common, although NCAP's range of test subjects is not comprehensive. In the small family car category, where NCAP places the Nissan Qashqai, there are just 10 models with five stars for adult occupant safety. Achieving the highest-ever five-star score should give the Qashqai even more of a marketing advantage. Part of the reason for the Qashqai's outstanding NCAP performance was the existence of two seatbelt pretensioner systems. A pyrotechnic pretensioner located at the bottom of the B-pillar pulls the shoulder strap to remove unnecessary slack and holds the occupant in place. A lap pretensioner positioned next to the door sill limits pelvis movement. The seat structure is designed to prevent the occupant sliding under the seatbelt. The main airbag then deploys and the steering column collapses. This meant that Nissan was able to contest successfully the two-point knee modifier normally deducted from NCAP scores. Knowing how to reclaim these two points ought to help Nissan to achieve five-star results on future vehicles.