Kia's Sonet For South Africa Gets 1-Star GNCAP Rating: Should Indian Customers Be Concerned?

The Kia Sonet recently made headlines following Global NCAP's publication of crash test results of the South Africa-spec subcompact SUV. The Sonet secured a low 1-star rating with Global NCAP noting that the vehicle’s bodyshell and footwell were unstable after the collision, chest protection was poor in side impact testing, and it dropped points for lacking three-point seatbelts for all passengers and an airbag deactivation switch for the front passenger seat. Intriguingly, while the test car featured ESC as standard, the model was marked down for not offering ESC as standard.

Also read: Kia Introduces BaaS Scheme For Carens Clavis EV

So, should we in India be concerned with the low rating?

Kia Sonet: Difference In Standard Safety Kit

There is a difference in specifications of the car exported to South Africa and the Sonet sold in India, ranging from features to the powertrain. While the India-spec subcompact SUV is offered with 1.2-litre naturally-aspirated petrol, 1.0-litre turbo-petrol and 1.5-litre diesel engines, the vehicle exported to South Africa can be had with either a 1.5-litre NA petrol or 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine.

Also Read: 2026 Kia Syros Drops ADAS; Features Also Deleted From Base Variant

Moving to the safety aspect, Global NCAP usually tests the most basic variant of cars available in the market, and the same is true of the South Africa-spec Sonet. The base variant of the Sonet in South Africa offers dual front airbags, ESC, hill start assist and ISOFIX as standard, and the rear bench only gets 3-point seat belts for the outer two passengers. A seatbelt reminder was only offered for the driver's seat as standard.

In comparison, the India-spec Sonet packs in six airbags as standard, as well as additional bits such as rear parking sensors, tyre pressure monitoring, impact-sensing door unlock, seat belt reminders for all passengers and three-point seat belts for all occupants. This should, on paper, mean that the India-spec SUV should score higher than its export-spec sibling.

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Should There Be Any Concern?

Should an Indian buyer be concerned? The answer to that question, unfortunately, isn't a resounding no. While the India-spec Sonet does offer more safety kit as standard and should, on paper, be safer than the South African model, it has not undergone testing at the hands of either Global NCAP or Bharat NCAP. Global NCAP did rate the bodyshell of the South Africa-spec car as ‘unstable’ in its crash test report, so how the body shell and the varying safety kit of the India-spec vehicle perform in instances of collisions remains unknown.

Also Read: Kia Seltos Gets 5-Star Bharat NCAP Safety Rating, Outscores The Tata Sierra

That said, Kia has had a good run in terms of crash test ratings in recent years, with both the new Seltos and Syros securing 5-star Bharat NCAP safety rating while older models such as the Carens MPV (with 6 airbags & ESC) did secure a 3-star Global NCAP rating back in 2024 for all units manufactured post December 2023.

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Will The India-Spec Sonet Be Crash-Tested?

It remains to be seen if the current India-spec Sonet will indeed be crash-tested by either Global NCAP or Bharat NCAP. However, at this point, it looks highly unlikely. For one, Global NCAP has taken a step back from actively testing Indian models since the inception of Bharat NCAP, while Bharat NCAP testing is voluntary in nature. Additionally, with Kia actively working on a second generation of its popular subcompact SUV, likely to arrive in 2027, the chances of a voluntary crash test for the current-gen Sonet are slim.