VW ID.4 and ID.5 get ANCAP nod in NZ

ANCAP has announced a five-star safety rating for Volkswagen’s ID.4 and ID.5 electric vehicles on their arrival into the New Zealand market.

As the first fully electric Volkswagen models to enter the Kiwi market, the ID.4 and ID.5 twins demonstrated solid scores across all assessment categories of ANCAP’s 2020-2022 rating criteria.

Both “partner” models demonstrated strong performance in Adult Occupant Protection with a score of 93 per cent.

ANCAP said High scores were achieved for protection in frontal and side impact crash tests, as well as vehicle-to-vehicle compatibility, however excursion (sideways movement) of the front seat occupant in the vehicle-to-pole far side impact test was relatively high, resulting in a reduced score for that scenario.

In the Child Occupant Protection portion of the assessment, the duo scored full marks in the frontal offset and side impact crash tests which contributed to an overall score of 89 per cent.

Importantly, both the ID.4 and ID.5 supplied in New Zealand are not fitted with child restraint anchorages in the centre rear seating position and these seating positions should not be used to transport younger children.

ANCAP said the ID.4 and ID.5 Pro and Pro+ variants offer an Adequate level of performance in their ability to automatically detect and respond to pedestrians and cyclists, Adequate performance for active emergency lane keeping functionality, and Good performance for active lane keep assist functionality.

However, and in contrast to ID.4 and ID.5 models supplied to the European market, New Zealand models are not equipped with a speed limit information function (SLIF), said ANCAP.

SLIF systems use in-built cameras and/or map data to establish the local speed limit and advise the driver so that the speed of the vehicle can be adjusted to suit the sign-posted speed.

Omission of a SLIF system resulted in a reduced Safety Assist score of 76 per cent for New Zealand models, compared with the Safety Assist score of 85 per cent applicable to European models.

The Volkswagen ID.4 and ID.5 also scored 76 per cent in the Vulnerable Road User category.

“New Zealand has been working hard to increase the availability of alternative-powered new vehicles into its fleet, and these two new five-star ratings will assist with a shift towards newer, safer and greener model choices,” said ANCAP chief executive officer, Carla Hoorweg.

“It is good to see Volkswagen’s new ID models arrive into New Zealand with five-star ANCAP safety ratings, (however) we would encourage Volkswagen to consider including speed limit information functionality in future upgrades, to ensure all buyers are provided with the same level of safety specification as offered in the European market.”