GWM Ute scores five-star ANCAP safety rating

The 2022 GWM Ute is the latest vehicle to receive a five-star ANCAP safety rating, with all units built post-August 1, 2021 subject to the rating.

After it was previously tested and found to have deficiencies with the design of the front head restraint and steering column components, GWM rectified the issue throughout production from August this year, with vehicles built between September 2020 and July 2021 set to benefit from the upgrades through servicing.

The Ute managed to score well in the occupant protection categories, having notched up a final result of 87 per cent for children, taking 43.03 of the 49 points available.

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Full marks were given for its results in the front and side dynamic tests, losing just under one point for restraint installation, while its on-board safety features saw it drop five from the maximum available.

In the adult occupant protection category, the Ute still brought home a strong result with 86 per cent, thanks to its total score of 32.74 points out of 38.

In the side impact, far side impact, rescue and extraction tests, the Ute was given the maximum points on offer, while in all but one of the remaining categories – frontal offset, oblique pole and whiplash protection – it scored within a point of the top rating.

Letting it down in this category was its 5.48 points out of eight in the full width frontal test, still dropping just under three from the most on offer.

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Moving on to its safety assistance systems, scoring 11.76 out of 16 possible points gave the Ute a 73 per cent result, as its seat belt reminders and lane support systems took full marks.

Missing out on any points for autonomous emergency braking (AEB) junction assist and driver monitoring due to a lack of the systems in the vehicle, its speed assistance systems and car-to-car AEB were able to score within a point of a perfect result.

Finally, the lowest rated category was its vulnerable road user protection, which still passed on 67 per cent with 36.48 from 54 points awarded.

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Only the lower leg impact tests resulted in a perfect score, with most other aspects – head impacts, upper leg impacts and AEB pedestrian – taking more than half the points on offer.

A lack of AEB support in the backover test of pedestrians saw it given no points here, while its AEB system for cyclists posted a total of 3.57 points out of nine.

As previously mentioned, this five-star safety rating currently only applies to GWM Utes built post-August 1, 2021, with those produced between September 2020 and July 2021 set to be rectified by the manufacturer over the coming months.