ANCAP SAFETY has assessed the active safety performance of electric commercial vans for the first time, as part of its latest round of Commercial Van Safety Comparison testing, bringing the total number of graded vans to 18.
The independent body published its inaugural round of Commercial Van Safety Comparison results in December 2020 in light of the increasing number of deliveries and last-mile freight movements seen during COVID-19, with a second round of van results released in December 2022.
Rather than using the typical star rating system, ANCAP uses an Olympic style medal system with bronze, silver, gold and platinum ratings applied to a range of ICE and electric vans available in Australia.
The commercial van analysis is undertaken as a parallel consumer information program to the star rating program to allow consumers and fleets to compare the availability and performance of active safety features across the commercial van market, but does not replace or alter existing ANCAP star ratings.
Five vans models were assessed based on the fitment and performance of their active (collision avoidance) safety systems which include low and high-speed autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane support systems (LSS), speed assistance systems (SAS) and occupant detection systems. Destructive crash testing does not currently form part of these Commercial Van Safety Comparison assessments.
With an all-time record high score of 96%, the new-generation Ford Transit Custom achieved a PLATINUM grading. The Transit Custom is sold with a comprehensive suite of active safety features as standard and is able to detect and respond to other vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists in forwards and turning scenarios. High levels of performance were recorded in each of these areas. Full points were awarded for lane support, speed assistance and occupant status monitoring.
In this latest round, and to updated criteria, the electric LDV eDeliver 7 achieved a GOLD grading with a performance score of 77%. The testing concluded that the eDeliver 7 is well-equipped, with the range of active collision avoidance technologies fitted as standard.
Testing of the eDeliver 7 showed Good performance in autonomous emergency braking (AEB) Car-to-Car, AEB Car-to-Cyclist, and lane support test scenarios. Adequate performance was recorded for its ability to detect and respond to pedestrians through its emergency braking system.
MY24 diesel-powered LDV Deliver 9 models built from January 2024 are also equipped with the full suite of active safety features as standard. This updated model elevates the Deliver 9 from a previous grading of BRONZE to GOLD (74%).
The Mercedes-Benz eSprinter and its diesel equivalent, Sprinter, both achieved PLATINUM gradings with scores of 89%. Active safety equipment is fitted to these models as standard, and high scores were awarded for Good performance in all assessment areas. This performance elevates MY24 models well above the previous SILVER grading and positions them at the top of the large van segment.
The electric Mercedes-Benz eVito and diesel Vito also achieved PLATINUM gradings with scores of 90%. AEB performance was Good in all assessment areas with the exception of AEB Car-to-Cyclist which was assessed as Adequate.
“Mercedes-Benz and Ford have elevated the benchmark for active safety across the van segment,” said ANCAP Chief Executive Officer, Carla Hoorweg.
Further positive safety specification adjustments across commercial vans models sold in Australia and New Zealand are anticipated in the coming year as a result of regulatory safety changes introduced into the European market last month (EU GSR2).
“Vehicles are a workplace for many. With thousands of commercial vans sold in Australia and New Zealand each year, our Commercial Van Safety Comparison assists fleet buyers and business customers to make informed purchasing decisions,” said Ms Hoorweg.
“The safety fitment and performance of all vehicles should not be market dependant, and with the regulatory updates recently introduced in Europe through GSR2, we’re looking forward to the flow-through of safety-enhanced models to the Australian and New Zealand markets in coming months,” said Ms Hoorweg.
Safety gradings are available for 18 commercial van models currently sold as new in Australia and New Zealand. Five vans are PLATINUM, five GOLD, five SILVER, and two BRONZE. The LDV G10/G10+ remains as the sole van with a grading status of ‘NOT RECOMMENDED’. Since ANCAP’s earlier publication of vans results, other van models that were previously ‘NOT RECOMMENDED’ have either been upgraded or withdrawn from the market.
ANCAP’s latest Commercial Van Safety Comparison is available here, and in coming months consumers and fleets will be able to dynamically search, filter and sort commercial van gradings via the ANCAP website ‘search’ tool, with enhancements to the ANCAP website currently underway.
