Citroën BERLINGO Crash Test

this page shows you the famous CITROËN BERLINGO when tested on safety!

BERLINGO CRASH TEST 2001
Citroën X 1.4 RHD | 5-door mini-MPV | 2001 model year | 1275 kg |
cars built on the same platform: Peugeot Partner

front and side impact rating						pedestrian test rating

how the tests are done -

Berlingo crash test mpeg 284k (Windows Media Player)

Test Scores: Front 2 (16%) Side 16 (89%) Overall 18 (53%)

In the frontal crash the Citroën Berlingo has problems with the bottom plate. But in the pole impact it shows itself better, even if it does not have side-airbags.

Frontal Impact
The bottom section of the Citroën Berlingo does not keep its shape in the frontal cras. It's getting deformed almost till the rear axle. The airbags do protect the drivers and passengers head and neck, but the volume is too little, because the safety belts don't do their task well enough.
That's why the the pressure from the safetybelt on the chest is too high for driver and passenger. The drivers chest makes contact with the steering wheel in the maximum load stage (after about 105 ms).
There are structures which could generate loads on the driver's knees during an impact, increasing injury risks for his knees and the legs below the knee. Only very simple protection materials are used to cover these structures. The protective space fof the feet and lower legs is being reduced by redal-intrusion.
The Berlingo gets for this frontal impact test only 2 of the 16 available points, which is a very bad result.
(translated by me from German).


driver	passenger	driver side

Side Impact
When hit in the side the Berlingo shows an intrusion equally divided from the roof down, in the neighbourhood of the B-pillar. Even without side-airbags the forces on all drivers bodyparst are under the limit. That's why the Berlingo gets 16 points for this test, which is very good.
(translated by me from German).

Child Restraint
Citroën specified universal Römer Prince restraints for testing. Even if the limit forward (550 mm) is exceeded the childs head does not make contact with the front seat. Also the headprotection for the children of 3 years does its work properly.
(translated by me from German).

Model history and safety equipment
The Citroën Berlingo was launched in 1996. Standard equipment in EU countries includes twin front airbags, front belt pre-tensioners and load limiters. The backseats have 3-point safetybelts.
(translated by me from German).

it seems they have had a good look at the Euro NCAP crash test,
because this is what Citroën writes for the new BERLINGO (model year 2003):

Continuous improvements to safety

Active safety equipment
Concerning the braking system, all Berlingos are fitted with front ventilated discs of large dimensions: 266 mm x 26 mm. ABS is standard *, and coupled with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution*.

Reinforced body structure
To ensure the safety of the occupants, the structure of the Berlingo has been reinforced to meet Europe’s most stringent criteria on impact resistance. The design of the front end has been reviewed. Impact resistance has been increased and the inner wings have been redesigned. The front doors of the Berlingo have been reinforced to maximise occupant safety in the event of side impact.

Equipment *
- front seats equipped as standard with seatbelt pretensioners and force limiters,
- driver’s airbag increased from 45 litres to 60 litres as standard*,
- 100 litre airbag available as standard*,
- 18-litre head/chest side airbags at front, availability depending on versions*.

* Depending on the version and the country

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this page was created 26 january 2003
last change 13 december 2003