Australia’s independent crash test agency ANCAP will begin assessing how the vehicles perform underwater as part of an updated test protocol in 2023.
ANCAP will once again make it more difficult to achieve a five-star safety rating, with vehicle submersion testing just one of several new areas of testing that will come into effect from January 2023 .
The new vehicle flooding criterion will be introduced as an extension of ANCAP’s existing rescue protocols for assessing vehicle accessibility after an accident.
Vehicle manufacturers will be required to provide proof that, for up to 10 minutes underwater, the doors can be opened without the use of batteries and the power windows can still function, so the occupants of the vehicle can. can get out of the car.
Without any evidence that the side windows still function underwater, the car manufacturer is required to provide a method that allows the occupants to open or break the side windows. This information should be in the owner’s manual.
ANCAP Executive Director Carla Hoorweg said: “While it is important never to enter floodwater on purpose, recent floods have reminded us that flooding can suddenly take a life away. vehicle and its occupants,” said ANCAP Executive Director Carla Hoorweg.
Automakers will be awarded points in the Adult Protection rating area for vehicles equipped with flood protection measures.
In addition to these new vehicle flooding tests, ANCAP will also introduce a new aspect of the child presence detection system assessment.
These systems are required to monitor the rear seats and doors and notify the driver or emergency services if a child is accidentally left in a locked vehicle.
ANCAP says these alerts can include visual or audible alerts via the infotainment system, honking, app alerts on the driver’s phone or ‘eCall’ to services emergency.
Ms Hoorweg said: “Just as important for your child to be safely secured in an appropriate safety seat is the safety of the vehicle they are traveling in.
“Five-star rated vehicles offer a high level of protection for child occupants and we encourage any parent buying a new vehicle on the market to make sure this is a priority.”
“From 2023, ANCAP will officially evaluate the child presence detection (CPD) system and some cars in the Australian market already offer this feature.”
Although ANCAP has been testing the effectiveness of automatic emergency braking (AEB) and lane assist systems (LSS) since 2018 involving other cars, pedestrians and cyclists, but ANCAP will expand the test to see how the system responds to motorcycles from 2023.
“All ANCAP-rated vehicles must provide a functioning AEB and LSS system if they are to qualify for a five-star ANCAP safety rating,” said Ms Hoorweg.
“Motorcycles can be harder to detect than cars or trucks, and these new tests should encourage improvements in collision avoidance with these vulnerable road users.”
ANCAP formally harmonized its protocols with Euro NCAP in 2018, and the two safety agencies now work together to determine what should be checked and how.
The independent crash testing agency usually updates its protocols every two years, but due to COVID there will be a three year gap between final protocol changesin 2020.
Few years recently AEB has been a major focus to Australia’s independent crash test agency.
AEB will be required on all new models introduced in Australia from March 2023 and all models sold in Australia from March 2025.
This is followed by an additional Australian Design Rule (ADR) mandating AEB to pedestrian detection, which will come into effect from 1 August 2024 for all newly introduced vehicles and 1 August 2026 for all new vehicles.
Ms Hoorweg said: “Traditional vehicle safety has focused on vehicle crash potential – the way a vehicle’s construction protects its occupants – but today our view of vehicle safety was much more general.
“Our requirements now encourage standard equipment of collision avoidance technologies and features that assist and protect vehicle occupants, other road users, and emergency service teams.”
THAN: ANCAP continues to experiment with harsher 2020 protocols
THAN: AEB stands out with new ANCAP campaign
THAN: New regulations mandate AEB from 2025
