Safety First: Nissan keeps putting customers first as Interstar, Townstar and Primastar all score top marks in EuroNCAP 2024 Safety Ratings

In its latest round of vehicle safety ratings, EuroNCAP, the European New Car Assessment Programme, has published scores for Nissan’s Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) lineup – Townstar, Primastar and Interstar.

Following robust safety tests, the Townstar and Primastar models have earned themselves a Gold rating, achieving an impressive safety assist performance rating of 78% and 69%, respectively.

The all-new Interstar – now available to pre-order in the UK – scored even higher and has been awarded EuroNCAP’s top Platinum rating with an overall score of 84%. These ratings are a testament to Nissan’s commitment to safety, particularly as from 2023 EuroNCAP has applied more rigorous testing and assessment protocols for commercial vans than those used in previous years.

At Nissan, we are continuously working to improve safety across our lineup. This commitment includes the development and adoption of automated driver support technologies that can help drivers avoid collisions or mitigate their effects.

Autonomous Emergency Braking Systems
In the testing category that evaluates a vehicle’s ability to detect and alert drivers to pedestrians and other vulnerable road users, all three vehicles scored impressively. The Townstar earned 26.8 out of 30, the Primastar 27.9, and the Interstar 25.6 points. Overall, all vehicles were rated as performing in the highest category “Good” throughout the tests.

Nissan is setting the standard for vehicle safety, and when testing the vehicles Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) systems, EuroNCAP noted the Townstar’s performance in this category as excellent. With a wide range of advanced driver assistance and safety features such as Intelligent Around View Monitor or  Intelligent Blind Spot Warning, Townstar can also detect stationary or slower-moving cars and avoid collisions in nearly all test scenarios thanks to Intelligent Forward Collision warning and Emergency Braking. Whether the target vehicle is directly ahead or off to the side, the system reacts brilliantly, even when a vehicle cuts across the van’s path.

Lane Support
Lane Support Systems are crucial in averting accidents involving vehicles departing from their lane or crossing into oncoming traffic, and Nissan’s Townstar and Interstar models performed strongly in this category, receiving solid scores of 13.8 and 16.3 out of 20, respectively.

The lane support systems in the Townstar and Interstar utilise lane departure warning technology, which signals to the driver when the van is drifting out of lane. Emergency lane keeping technology also intervenes more aggressively in certain critical situations to prevent the vehicle from leaving the road, ensuring that you and those around you are kept safe at all times.

Speed Assistance
Across Nissan’s LCV range, Nissan has introduced various technology to advise drivers of the current speed limit and warn them if they are exceeding it. All vehicles received solid scores across the category, with the Primastar receiving 9/15, Townstar receiving 14.5/15 and the Interstar receiving 11.4/15. The vehicles use various technologies, which for the Townstar and Interstar model include digital mapping and a camera, to determine the local speed limit, and to automatically set the speed limiter, accordingly. This ensures drivers are fully aware the speed limit and remain at a safe speed whilst driving.

Occupant Status Monitoring rating
At Nissan, we recognise that drivers can sometimes be unpredictable, making occupant status monitoring essential for enhancing vehicle safety. To ensure driver well-being, we have integrated safety features such as seatbelt reminders and attention assist technology which can help avoid accidents and ensure customer peace of mind. EuroNCAP awarded our Interstar and Primastar models full marks in this category (15/15), and our Townstar model 10/15.

Andrew Limbert, Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) Manager said: “The outstanding performances across our Light Commercial Vehicle range across all categories demonstrates our clear commitment and dedication to improving passenger and road safety. Nissan is at the forefront when it comes to the advanced suite of technologies that act as a second pair of eyes, identifying potential dangers and helping the driver to avoid an accident. EuroNCAP’s thorough testing and rating programme, is crucial for consumers to truly understand the various safety technologies we have introduced across our vehicles. It’s great to see this recognised across their ratings”.

Euro NCAP’s new criteria for Commercial Van Ratings have focused on advanced driver assistance systems and have placed greater emphasis on vulnerable road users, including pedestrian safety in night-time scenarios, cyclist protection, and the introduction of a new van-to-car crash scenario.