Safety Beyond Stars: Record-Breaking All-New Volvo V40 Impresses ANCAP

SYDNEY – Jan 18, 2013: The All-New Volvo V40 has been awarded the maximum five-star safety rating by ANCAP (the Australasian New Car Assessment Program), further reinforcing its recent best-ever overall result in the Euro NCAP rating.

“The ANCAP Rating Road Map sets out minimum safety requirements for each star rating – one through to five stars,” said ANCAP Chief Executive Officer, Mr Nicholas Clarke. “Through this, year on year, ANCAP is setting the bar higher for vehicles to reach each of the star ratings.”

In addition to achieving minimum scores across all physical crash tests, vehicles must be sold with a minimum range of safety equipment and safety assist technologies (SAT) as standard.

“The stand-out performer in today’s ratings release is the Volvo V40,” said Mr Clarke.

“The V40 is equipped with a lengthy list of SAT including a world-first bonnet airbag system. Sensors detect when a pedestrian has been struck, lifts the bonnet and fires the airbag to provide greater head protection. The airbag covers the windscreen pillars and lower portion of the windscreen. It operates over a range of speeds and can detect different pedestrian statures,” said Mr Clarke.

ANCAP goes on to acknowledge that in the pedestrian test of the All-New V40, the bonnet provided “good protection in all areas likely to be struck by a pedestrian’s head, making the V40 the first car to score maximum points in this area, [as well as being] one of the few vehicles to earn a ‘Good’ rating for overall pedestrian protection.”

Due to be launched in Australia at the end of February, the All-New V40 is charged with a plethora of standard safety features usually found on larger and more expensive cars.

Alongside our world-first Pedestrian Airbag technology, is the next-generation of Volvo’s pioneering City Safety collision avoidance technology, which now works at speeds up to 50km/h.

“We’re delighted with what ANCAP had to say about the All-New V40,” said Matt Braid, Managing Director, Volvo Car Australia.

“Achieving the maximum safety rating possible is paramount, but the praise of our world-first Pedestrian Airbag technology gives weight to our ‘safety beyond stars’ philosophy and is yet another important step toward our 2020 target that nobody should die or be seriously injured in a new Volvo car.”

With a range of fuel-efficient engines, advanced driving dynamics and slick Scandinavian design cues throughout, the All-New Volvo V40 has also been shortlisted for European Car of the Year.