Maruti Suzuki Wagon R recieves 1 star in 2023 Global NCAP crash test

The latest set of Global NCAP crash tests has revealed that the Maruti Suzuki Wagon R has scored 1 star for adult crash rating and 0 stars for child safety. The Wagon R was previously tested in 2019 and it received 2 stars.

However, this was under less stringent testing parameters compared to 2023, which is why there is a drop in the test scores. The latest set of Global NCAP crash tests has revealed that the Maruti Suzuki Wagon R has scored 1 star for adult crash rating and 0 stars for child safety. The Wagon R was previously tested in 2019 and it received 2 stars. However, this was under less stringent testing parameters compared to 2023, which is why there is a drop in the test scores.

Maruti Wagon R Global NCAP: adult crash test rating explained 
The Maruti Suzuki Wagon R scored a rating of 19.69 points out of a maximum of 34 points. The car also scored 6.7 points in the frontal offset deformable barrier test and 13 points in the side movable deformable barrier test. There was no side pole impact test conducted because the car does not curtain airbags, only two front airbags. 

Adult Occupant Protection - Maruti Suzuki Wagon R

In the frontal impact test, it was noted that the driver was offered 'good' protection for the neck, while 'adequate' protection was offered for the head. The driver's chest was offered 'weak' protection, while the knees were offered marginal protection. The test even noted that the knees could impact with ‘dangerous structures’ behind the dashboard. Notably, in the previous Global NCAP crash tests conducted in December 2022, the Maruti Suzuki Swift too received the comment about the driver's knee being subject to impact with dangerous structures behind the dashboard. 

Meanwhile, the passenger's side fared a bit better with 'adequate' protection offered for the chest, and 'good' protection offered for the head and neck. The footwell and bodyshell were also rated as 'unstable' and unable to withstand any further loadings. The Wagon R does not come with Electronic Stability Control as standard, and it does not comply with GTR9 or UN127 pedestrian safety norms. 

Maruti Wagon R Global NCAP: child crash test rating explained 
While the Wagon R managed to score one star in the adult crash rating, the child occupant protection was not so good. Maruti Suzuki did not equip the car with ISOFIX nor did it recommend a CRS (child restraint system) in the Wagon R. The test also noted that there is no option to disable the front passenger airbag for the rear-facing child restraint system as well as the absence of three-point seatbelts for all seating positions. If the airbag was to deploy during an impact, the airbag would be adverse to the safety of the child. The tests also showed that children were subject to a high risk of injuries in both front and rear-facing positions. 

Indian road safety
David Ward, president of the Towards Zero Foundation said, “Maruti Suzuki falls well short again on safety performance for some of the most popular cars sold in India.” 

In February 2023, Maruti Suzuki sold more units of Wagon R (16,889) than Toyota's entire sales (15,267). The Wagon R is not even the carmaker's bestselling product, but it throws light on the scale of the number of sales that Maruti manages to complete. 

In 2020, the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data suggested that there were over 1.2 lakh deaths from road-related accidents in India, which boils down to a death every four and a half minutes, so, regardless of what you drive, always be alert and stay safe on the road.