Peugeot 308 awarded Five Stars by Euro NCAP
Even before it is launched, the Peugeot 308 has been awarded the maximum Five Star occupant protection rating by Euro NCAP.Safety is always a crucial factor in the design of any new Peugeot vehicle. The 308, therefore, has benefited from Peugeot’s wide experience and also from the latest technological advances to ensure it provides its occupants with the highest levels of safety.This has also been recognised by Euro NCAP which has awarded the Peugeot 308: 5 Stars for occupant protection
4 Stars for child protection
3 Stars for pedestrian protection.
The 308 is designed structurally to dissipate impact energy in a designed and controlled way. At the front it has three impact absorption structures to ensure maximum protection in a front impact. At the side, the ‘B’ post has been specially strengthened and the design of the doors and side structure ensure maximum rigidity and create a solid barrier to protect the occupants.The rear of the vehicle has been designed to incorporate an aluminium impact beam to absorb impact forces and ensure maximum protection in a rear impact.To provide the best possible protection for pedestrians, the Peugeot 308 incorporates a pedestrian impact beam and protective padding to help reduce the extent of leg and thigh injuries. In addition, the design of the bonnet and the shape of the inner frame ensure maximum space is available under the bonnet to limit head injuries, if a pedestrian was to hit the bonnet.To supplement the performance of the structure in terms of impact resistance, a range of protection devices has been developed to restrain and protect the occupants:A total of nine airbags are available:
Two adaptive front airbags (passenger airbag can be deactivated to fit a rear-facing child seat)
A steering column airbag
Two side airbags
Two curtain airbags
Two rear side airbags
To restrain the occupants, five three-point inertia reel seat belts with a fasten seat belt warning system are fitted. At the front, pretensioners and force limiters are fitted with force limiters also on the outer rear seat belts.To protect occupants in a rear impact from possible ‘whiplash’ injuries, the front and rear head restraints and the design of the seats ensure improved support for the head.The Peugeot 308 provides high levels of child safety with three Isofix child seat mountings to ensure child safety seats are attached directly to the vehicle structure. All mountings are of the latest three point design and are available on the front passenger seat and the two outer rear seats.
The 308 is also equipped with an electrically operated child safety system which automatically locks the rear doors and disables the electric rear windows, all from a switch operated by the driver.Improving safety levels can, however, increase the weight of a vehicle and, therefore, affect emissions and increase fuel consumption. To reduce this possibility, the weight of the 308 has been managed by the widespread use of light weight materials such as high-strength steel, aluminium and composite materials.
Active safety is also a strong point with the standard fitment on all models of ABS with EBFD / EBA and ESP. Xenon directional headlamps and tyre pressure sensors are fitted as standard on the range topping GT model.With the launch of the new Peugeot 308 on to the UK market in September, no longer will it be necessary to compromise on safety when choosing a family car. Now a family car can provide top levels of safety, a spacious luxurious interior and low emissions ensuring low taxation and running costs. For further details please log onto: euroncap.com.
