New wholly and plug-in electric cars within the price range to achieve a tasty Clean Car rebate still need a crash test score from our sole recognised provider, ANCAP. But not all incoming models have this. A problem?

THE rebate-fuelled rush for new electric vehicles might pressure our accredited safety ratings agency to readjust its priorities and put New Zealand first.

Among eligibility requirements for achieving Clean Car Discounts of $8625 for full electrics and $5750 for plug-in hybrid drivetrains is having a crash test rating of no less than three stars.

The car industry understands this has to specifically come from the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme, ANCAP, an independent safety organisation funded by NZ and Australia whose assessments have priority recognition in both countries.

However, some incoming product that otherwise fulfils requirement has not been tested by that organisation and might not ever be, because it is unlikely to be available in Australia.

Regardless, their distributors have identified these products as being eligible for the Clean Car rebate, on technology and pricing grounds. But will they be?

The Motor Industry Association, which represents all new vehicles distributors, believes they should be and has taken its argument to Waka Kotahi, the transport agency, with hope of quick reconciliation.

ANCAP’s historic practice of assessing cars for both countries has always been conducted with Australia having priority and also on assumption that what sells there will also be available here.

That scenario is now changing. New Zealand is already moving ahead of its neighbour in delivering electric cars to our market that are potentially not going to be sold – in some instances, not immediately and in others not at all - across the Tasman, where the political will (at federal level in particular) to push the technology is less evident.

That focus is already falling on three battery pure models that have been raising NZ consumer interest since the rebates’ announcement and are signalled for release before the end of the year.

Two are from a common brand. One car has been signalled for evaluation for introduction to Australia next year. The other does not seem to be under consideration by our neighbour. Both will be in NZ before year-end and the distributor here has already advised the saving they will achieve with the rebate. These cars have strong safety ratings from Euro NCAP, a sister organisation to ANCAP.

The third is set to shared, yet the NZ release timing could well precede Australia’s. That car has also yet to be put through any recognised independent crash test.

Can any achieve the rebate without an ANCAP rating?

MIA chief executive David Crawford identifies this as being a point requiring clarification.

“We are in talks with Waka Kotahi with expectation of achieving a workable solution.”

He accepts there might be validity to the proposition that, if the two markets are going to become less conjoined in product choices, then ANCAP – which, though an Australian operation, nonetheless receives considerable NZ funding, from Government and the NZ Automobile Association – might have to look at how it might better serve Kiwis.

Crawford says it helps already that ANCAP and Euro NCAP are aligned and that ANCAP will often sanction European results in lieu of having to conduct its own tests.

Conceivably, that will be a solution for the common brand cars. However, as matters stand, they still conceivably demand ANCAP to sign them off, unless Waka Kotahi decides otherwise.

There seems some likelihood the third product will also undergo Euro NCAP evaluation soon and its maker has expressed confidence it will be a five star car. There is no indication when or even if will be tested by ANCAP.

Proposing for Euro NCAP to be automatically considered of equal quality to ANCAP, without need for a Melbourne rubber stamp, would be a solution the industry might forward. It becomes more challenging when proposing other country’s test regimes – Japan’s, China’s and North America’s – be considered just as useful, because their tests do not stick to the NCAP formula. There are questions of rigour.

With distributors keen to make the most of a tantalising sales opportunity for vehicles that conform to all other Clean Car requirements, there is some urgency to reconcile this.

While the lack of an ANCAP rating could keep an electric vehicle from being eligible for the rebate, it will not keep it from being made available for sale.

It is not rare for new fossil-fuelled cars to release here without ANCAP crash test score, however that tick is a valuable currency, especially for mainstream brands.

Recently the distributor of a popular new model lamented that it did not come with an ANCAP rating because the model is not being sold in Australia. It has an optimal NCAP result but, at time of writing, ANCAP had not adopted this.