Volkswagen Taigun & Skoda Kushaq Bag 5-Star Safety Rating At Global-NCAP

Speaking about safety, Indian consumers in recent years have started to prefer safer cars due to improved awareness among consumers. Moreover, it is not surprising to see both Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun scoring identical ratings at the Global NCAP as both models are built on the same MQB-A0 IN platform under the India 2.0 business strategy.

It is also worth mentioning that, the same platform is being used to make Skoda Slavia and Volkswagen Virtus sedans in India. Also, thanks to this new platform and the new strategy, Volkswagen Group has been able to achieve more than 90 per cent localisation in the country.

Coming back to safety, both Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun SUVs come with top-tier safety features such as 6 airbags, hill hold control, ABS with EBD, traction control (TC), Brake Disc Wiping, Roll Over Protection, tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), multi-collision braking system (MBS), hill start assist, Anti-Slip Regulation and Motor Slip Regulation, ISOFIX points and a few more.

In addition to that, both Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun use identical engine options as well, where the base engine option continues to be a 1.0-litre TSI engine with 113bhp of peak power and 178Nm of peak torque. This engine on both models comes with either a 6-speed manual transmission or a 6-speed automatic transmission.

The next engine option is the larger 1.5-litre TSI petrol engine with 147.5bhp of peak power and 250Nm of peak torque. This engine has the ability to deactivate two of its four cylinders to further improve fuel efficiency. Moreover, this powertrain also comes with manual and automatic gearbox options, however, the automatic gearbox is a more sophisticated 7-speed DSG unit.

In terms of features, both Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun come with an almost identical equipment list that includes features such as a large touchscreen infotainment unit with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless charging pad, electric sunroof, automatic climate control, automatic headlamps, automatic wipers, cruise control, rear AC vents, auto headlamps, auto wipers and much more. However, the Volkswagen Virtus comes with a digital instrument cluster, whereas the Skoda Kushaq sports an analogue unit.

Post the price hike, the Volkswagen Taigun prices start from Rs 11.55 lakh (ex-showroom, India) for the base Comfortline variant, whereas the base variant of the Skoda Kushaq SUV is priced at Rs 11.29 lakh (ex-showroom, India).

Thoughts About Volkswagen Taigun & Skoda Kushaq SUVs Bagging 5-Star Safety Rating

Thanks to the 5-Star safety rating from Global NCAP for both Volkswagen Taigun and Skoda Kushaq SUVs, we expect sales figures of both these SUVs to improve as it will help the respective automakers to further attract customers and improve sales.