Deepal S07 BEV assessed by ANCAP

COINCIDING with an expansion of its dealer network, Inchape brand Deepal has scored a five-star rating from independent safety body ANCAP for its first model available Down Under, the fully electric S07 medium-size SUV.

ANCAP reports the coupe-style BEV achieved a record equalling score of 95 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, “matching Toyota’s Camry as the top scorer for its physical protection and safe restraint of adult occupants against current 2023-2025 criteria.”

Thirty-seven vehicles have been star rated against these requirements to date with the S07’s record rating attributed in part to “unblemished” injury risk scores for the driver in the side impact and oblique pole crash tests, and the front-seat passenger in the frontal offset crash test.

ANCAP was complimentary about the design and structure of the China-built Deepal S07 which also demonstrated good performance with a low risk of serious injury to occupants of ‘opponent’ vehicles in a crash.

There was however a “very” minor deduction of 0.86 points out of a potential 8.00-point penalty applied for the assessment of vehicle compatibility in the frontal offset crash test.

The Deepal S07 followed through with maximum points awarded for protection of child occupants in both the frontal offset and side impact crash tests.

The S07’s assessment after crash testing revealed it provides safe access to trapped or injured vehicle occupants by first-responders despite recessed electric side door handles which ANCAP requires to be in the extended, ready-to-open position immediately after a crash where the vehicle’s system deploys an airbag or detects a severe impact.

The S07’s door handles post-crash showed it met these criteria, and in addition, its doors could be opened if the vehicle lost power. It was also shown that its electric windows were able to be opened following water submergence.

In terms of collision avoidance capability facilitated by ADAS technology, ANCAP found the S07 fitted with a full suite of autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and lane support systems that delivered “Good” and “Adequate” performance according to ANCAP, with mixed results in some of the more advanced AEB pedestrian test scenarios.

 A “Marginal” performance report was recorded for the AEB crossing scenarios where the S07 showed limited auto-brake performance when crossing the path of another vehicle.

The tech rich, well-equipped Deepal S07 arrived on the market Down Under this month (January) priced from $53,900 excluding on roads and is powered by single electric motor driving the rear wheels rated at 160kW/320Nm providing a claimed range of 475km from its 80kWh battery.

In relation to the Deepal S07 crash test results, ANCAP chief executive officer, Carla Hoorweg said “We’ve seen a number of new brands enter the local market over the past year and they continue to impress in meeting the high safety standard Australian consumers and fleet buyers expect.”