Australasia's independent voice on vehicle safety, ANCAP, has today issued a 4 star safety rating for the recently-released Citroën C4 with performance falling short in three of the four key areas of safety assessment.

The Citroën C4 - which was released into Australia this month and New Zealand in October - achieved scores of 76 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection (AOP), 81 per cent for Child Occupant Protection (COP), 57 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection (VRUP) and 62 per cent for Safety Assist. Child Occupant Protection was the only assessment area in which the C4 managed to reach five-star territory. The thresholds for achieving the market-expected five star rating were missed for the AOP, VRUP and Safety Assist pillars.

"Unfortunately, the Citroën C4's scores fell short in three of our four key areas of assessment meaning it was unable to meet the five star safety standard consumers and fleets have come to expect," said ANCAP Chief Executive Officer, Carla Hoorweg.

"21 of the 23 new models rated by ANCAP to our current 2020-2022 criteria have achieved five star ANCAP safety ratings, and this highlights the great work vehicle manufacturers are doing to provide their customers with the safest vehicles they can."

"Achieving the highest level of safety in ANCAP assessments is not a simple task, yet it is clear through the star rating results we continue to see from the vast majority of brands that collectively the ambition exists to supply the safest vehicles possible."

"The safety performance of the C4 suggests the same level of ambition shown by many of its competitors was not a focus for Citroën with this particular model."

"It is likely that with some small enhancements, Citroën could see the C4 elevated to five stars, and we would strongly encourage Citroën to consider introducing such improvements."

A notable limitation for the C4 is its lack of far-side impact protection, which has been required through ANCAP protocols since 2020.

Typically, this is offered in the form of a centre airbag in small cars like the C4, and without this feature, or other appropriate design countermeasure, the Citroën scored just 0.12 points out of 4.00 points in this area of assessment.

Full details on the safety performance of the Citroën C4 can be viewed at:
https://www.ancap.com.au/safety-ratings/citroen/c4/44b203

EDITORS NOTE:

• The overall star rating of a vehicle is limited by its lowest performing area of assessment.
• The standard specification of Citroën C4 models sold in Australia and New Zealand is slightly better than that offered in Europe, with locally-supplied vehicles fitted with a camera and radar autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system. This combination AEB system is likely to offer improved Vulnerable Road User Protection performance, however due to limitations in the scores achieved for Adult Occupant Protection and Safety Assist, any improved AEB performance would not alter the overall star rating.
• Public health requirements and state-based lockdowns have impacted ANCAP's test program during 2021 resulting in delays to the conduct of testing and publication of ANCAP safety ratings for a number of vehicle models.