Mahindra XUV300, The Safest Made-In India Car, Grabs Further Global Accolades

• It scored 16.42/17 for adult protection for a 5-star safety rating.
• In child protection, the SUV scored 37.44/49 to give it a 4-star score.
• The only downsides were the lack of a three-point belt in the middle rear seat and poorly marked ISOFIX mountings.
• A more powerful XUV300 Sportz T-GDI is on the way for a mid-2020 launch in India.

Mahindra’s XUV300 has been on a roll since the start of the new decade. It started off with becoming the safest made-in-India vehicle in the country with a 5-Star Global NCAP safety rating back in January. And now, this milestone has earned the SUV further accolades as it has won the Global NCAP ‘Safer Choice’ Award. This achievement is only available to carmakers achieving the highest safety ratings for cars sold in India. Some of the criterias include a 5-star score in adult protection and a 4-star rating for child protection.

The sub-4 metre SUV’s 5-star adult occupant overall score was 16.42 out of 17. This was higher than both the Tata Nexon and Altroz which received 16.06 and 16.13, respectively. Protection for the head, chest, and legs was rated ‘good’ for the front passenger. Head, neck, right leg, and upper left leg protection was good for the driver, with the driver’s chest and lower left leg getting ‘adequate’ protection.

In child occupant protection, the XUV300 scored 37.44/49, which is a satisfactory one. It provided good protection for both the 18-month-old and 3-year-old child dummies in ISOFIX-mounted child seats. The only minor chink in its safety rating was the lack of a three-point belt in the middle rear seat and poorly marked ISOFIX mountings.

This isn’t the only good news coming the way of the XUV300 as the carmaker unveiled the XUV300 Sportz T-GDI at Auto Expo 2020. It gets a BS6-compliant 1.2-litre turbo-petrol engine and will be the most powerful sub-4 metre SUV when launched in mid-2020. It is likely to be priced at a premium over the current top-spec XUV300 petrol which is priced at Rs 11.84 lakh (ex-showroom).