With Chinese cars becoming increasingly popular in Britain, new crash test results have raised major concerns about the safety of some of the budget-friendly motors arriving from East Asia.

European vehicle safety body Euro NCAP has published results for an affordable small electric Chinese model already being sold in mainland Europe showing it 'crumpling' during a frontal impact.

The Dongfeng Box hatchback scored just three (out of five) stars in Euro NCAP's rigorous assessment, having been marked down due to a flaw identified with its structural integrity.

During the frontal offset crash test – designed to replicate a head-on collision – multiple spot-welds [resistance welding used to join sheet metal] failed on part of the vehicle’s body shell, compromising its safety.

'If spot welds fail during a crash, the structure can lose its integrity - increasing the risk of deformation around the cabin and reducing protection for occupants,' the safety body warned.

The Box is currently available in Switzerland and Norway for around £20,000. There's no confirmation as yet regarding plans to also sell it in the UK.

The report comes as latest figures show that more than one in ten new cars bought in Britain between July through to September were Chinese, as newcomer brands continue to stamp their mark on the UK car market. 

Dongfeng is one of the four biggest car makers in China selling almost 2.5million vehicles last year - and the Box is its first foray into the European market.

Debuting in Switzerland last summer, it launched priced from CHF 21,990 - around £19,500 - to rival the likes of Citroen's e-C3, currently one of the cheapest EVs on sale in the UK and Europe.

The Box is powered by a 94bhp single e-motor with energy provided by a 42.3kWh battery to achieve a claimed range of 193 miles between charges. 

But while it might undercut rivals on price, Euro NCAP has found it might also shortchange customers on protection. 

The Dongfeng's failure was revealed during the 'Mobile Progressive Deformable Barrier test' it subjects around 50 different models to each year.

The evaluations sees a portion of the vehicle - though not the entire front - collide with a barrier to mimic real-world head-on crashes, which are the most common and often severe type of accident.

It is performed with the car being tested travelling at 31 mph and with a 50 per cent overlap against a deformable barrier on an oncoming 1,400 kg trolley, also travelling at 31mph.  

Frontal collisions are responsible for more deaths and serious injuries than any other accident type, Euro NCAP says.

And for adult occupant protection, the Box scored just 69 per cent. 

'The unstable bodyshell raises concerns over the protection it would offer at higher speeds in the event of a similar accident,' the report said. 

And it wasn't the only major cause of concern in the tests. 

'After the impact, the automatic door locking mechanism of the Box failed to unlock, potentially hindering first responders’ efforts to get to the occupants of the vehicle,' the safety body found.

It also highlighted 'insufficient pressure in the steering wheel airbag' during the collision, which meant the driver’s head 'made contact with the wheel'.

The assessment also revealed that some parts of the dashboard structure posed a risk of injury to front occupants’ legs. 

'The Box also lacks any countermeasures to prevent occupant-to-occupant impact between those sitting in the front, in the event of a side-impact collision,' the report concluded.

Dr. Aled Williams, programme director at Euro NCAP, said: Sales of electric cars are rising across Europe and the UK, and with the growth in the market comes new and affordable products – cutting the costs for consumers who want to switch to electric.

'However, the Dongfeng Box doesn’t match the safety performance of other small EVs tested by Euro NCAP. 

'Other affordable EVs, such as the BYD Dolphin Surf, Firefly, Mini Cooper e, Lynk & Co 02, and Renault 4 and 5 have achieved four or five stars, highlighting the safety gap for Dongfeng’s Box.

'It was a concern that the spot welds were compromised during our tests and could be further compromised in higher-speed accidents. Such a failure must be addressed to match competitor vehicles in what’s a fast-growing part of the EV market.'

Dongfeng has not yet responded to its three-star Euro NCAP rating or confirmed if it will make alterations to the Box's structure to make it more durable during collisions. 

Is every new car sold in the UK crash tested? 

Given the extensive time and effort it takes to crash test cars, Euro NCAP simply does not have the capacity to assess every new model entering the UK market.

However, any new car sold in Britain must be type approved by the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA).

Manufacturer must demonstrate that a new vehicle meets specific minimum standards - primarily safety and environmental standards such as the amount of pollution the car produces - to appear in UK showrooms.

These are typically European standards outlined by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). 

We asked the VCA to clarify exactly which safety requirements are in place for new models receiving type approval.

A spokesperson said: 'In general mass production manufacturers of passenger cars (M1 category) will use the GB Type approval scheme to facilitate registration in the market. 

'The minimum crash testing requirements for this vehicle category to gain a GB Type Approval are the following UNECE regulations: Offset Frontal Impact, UN Regulation 94 and Side Impact with a barrier, UN Regulation 95/

'Please note there are supplementary safety and impact tests for individual aspects of the vehicle.'

Steve Gooding, director of road safety charity RAC Foundation, said: 'Most of us take it for granted that the cars we are being sold are safe, due to the extensive testing they go through.

'But even so there are degrees of safety which different tests can reveal. 

'So whilst car buyers are often laser-focused on the economics of buying and running a vehicle they would be well-advised also to study the safety ratings as these might be the best deciding factor between the different models they are considering.'

While Dongfeng isn't one of the brands to have launched in Britain, there are now over 15 different Chinese manufacturers selling cars in the UK - many of which the typical motorist isn't familiar with.

Yet Britons are snapping up Chinese cars - particularly EVs - at an increasing rate, having been impressed by the high specification, bounty of equipment and low starting prices.

In September, three Chinese models broke into the top 10 list of Britain's best-seller during the busiest month of the calendar for car registrations - a sign of a 'major shift in the market's balance of power,' analysts said.

In the last three months, Chinese models accounted for more than one in ten new cars entering our streets, securing a quarterly market share of 11.8 per cent - a meteoric rise from nigh-on zero a decade ago.

The most popular Chinese brand - MG - delivered more new cars to UK drivers than established marques like Vauxhall during the three-month period, sales records show.

Schmidt Automotive Research says Chinese manufacturers are tightening their stronghold on Britain's new car market at a 'rapid pace', currently doubling market share year-on-year to disrupt the status quo of European, Korean and Japanese manufacturers.

How do other Chinese cars perform in crash tests? Pretty well, actually...

In the last two years, Euro NCAP has crash tested 36 cars produced by Chinese brands - and 33 have scored maximum five-star rantings.

The Dongfeng's three-star performance is the worst of all, while the MG3 hybrid supermini and ZS SUVs both scored four stars after the safety body founds issues with the protection provided druing collisions.

Yet, Chinese cars are performing just as well - if not better - than well-known mainstream rivals from Europe, Japan and the US.

Since the beginning of 2024, models from major marques including Dacia (Bigster and Duster), Ford (Tourneo Custom), Jeep (Avenger), Suzuki (Swift) and Volkswagen (T-Cross) have been awarded three-star ratings for issues highlighted during assessments.

Chinese brands have also been incredibly reactive to poor crash test results, with one making wholesale changes to its airbag system to improve protection. 

In July, Euro NCAP highlighted a flaw with the rear curtain airbag of the Chinese Chery Tiggo 7 and 8 SUVs. 

The pair failed to provide adequate protection to a child’s head in the event of a side-impact. 

After the fault was identified, a retest was performed, but the problem remained. 

Subsequently, at Euro NCAP’s suggestion, Chery redesigned the system, and in the latest tests, the issue was found to be resolved. 

The Tiggos were subsequently upgraded to five-star ratings ahead of going on sale in the UK in early September.

Commenting on the actions of Chery, Dr Williams said: 'It is pleasing for Euro NCAP to highlight yet another example of a car manufacturer responding positively to the findings of our rigorous, independent safety tests.

'Chery acted swiftly to address the fault we identified, and the resulting fix has raised the Tiggo to a five-star rating.

'Striving toward the highest possible safety rating is in the consumer’s best interest.'

As well as the Chery Tiggos, other Chinese cars sold in Britain to receive five-star Euro NCAP scores in the last two years include the following: BYD Dolphin Surf, Geely EX5, Jaecoo 7 SHS, Leapmotor C10, MG IM5 and IM6 and MG HS.