The Tonale, the first all-new model from Alfa Romeo since the Stelvio in 2016, met all requirements for a 5 star rating, despite lacking centre airbags and proving to be an aggressive collision partner in frontal crashes. Overall, the SUV performs well in car to car and car to vulnerable road user crash avoidance tests and it offers an Attention Assist system that can detect driver drowsiness. The fully-revamped Kia Sportage shares a platform with the 5-star Hyundai Tucson tested last year. It is equally well equipped and scored very similarly in safety tests, earning 5 stars as well. The same can be said of the Cupra Born, VW group’s sportier alternative to the ID.3.

In the van-based MPV segment, Mercedes-Benz brings the Citan Tourer and its posher version, the T-Class. Both share the platform of the Renault Kangoo but are, across the board, better-equipped with a new centre airbag for additional far-side impact protection and high performing active safety features.

The Toyota Aygo X is the latest new arrival in the highly competitive supermini segment, where every Euro counts. The small cross-over city car does well overall but forgoes some more advanced safety systems, resulting in a 4-star rating. Finally, BMW’s battery electric compact executive car i4 shows that luxury does not always means better safety performance. Equipped with a similar sensor set to the 3 Series tested in 2019, the gran sedan missed out on some critical crash avoidance points and achieved a 4-star rating.

Following these tests, the EV6 and new C-Class were awarded the top five-star rating alongside the C40 Recharge and Multivan. The Astra and 308, both of which are based on Stellantis’ EMP2 platform, were each rated at four star cars in the small family category. As such, the vehicles scored similarly across the Euro NCAP’s four assessment areas.

Both the offset and full-width crash tests highlighted marginal chest injury protection for average male and small female drivers. Though neither of Stellantis’ cars were equipped with a central airbag for far-side crash protection – an increasingly common countermeasure on modern cars. Likewise, both cars offer several crash avoidance technologies, but do not include the market’s latest advancements. The four-star ratings of both the Astra and 308 will apply to their PHEV variants.

The Euro NCAP underlined the crash protection capabilities of the cars that scored five stars in this test series, with all scoring 90% or above. In comparison, the cars from Stellantis scored 76% and 80%. The program also praised the good results achieved by all cars for child occupant protection.

The largest differences between the EV6, C-Class, C40 Recharge and Multivan were found in their VRU protection offering. Fitted with an active bonnet, the C-Class for instance surpassed the EV6’s front-end performance. The C40 Recharge led on overall assistance technology, while the Multivan held its own among the rest of the vehicles tested.

Mercedes-Benz’s Car-to-X Communication, provided as part of the Mercedes.me service package, received a Euro NCAP Advanced reward. The system leverages data from other vehicles and a cloud-based service to provide an early warning of potential hazards in a car’s vicinity. In anticipating a variety of road hazards ahead of the driver, Car-to-X works to ensure heightened user safety is achieved and maintained at all times.

In this round, the vehicles tested were the Jaguar I-PACE, the refreshed Polestar 2, the VW ID.5, and the Nissan Qashqai – each of which received a grade from Entry to Very Good. Following these tests, Euro NCAP published their results, grading the I-PACE system as Entry, the Polestar 2’s as Good, and the systems featured on the VW ID.5 and Nissan Qashqai as Very Good.

The program assesses ADAS externally, outside of the regular overall rating system, with its tests comprising out of series of critical highway driving scenarios. Among these are typical cut-in and cut-out scenarios designed to show how the system supports the driver in avoiding a potential crash. The tests work similarly to evaluate how the driver and system cooperate, while identifying how the system ensures the driver remains engaged in the driving task, avoiding over-trust. Finally, the vehicle’s ability to mitigate the consequences of a crash, referred to as safety backup, is tested in the event of an accident being unavoidable.

Delving into its reasoning behind its grading of each model, Euro NCAP highlighted the new Qashqai’s perfect scores in Driver Engagement and Vehicle Assistance. Likewise, it praised the car’s ProPILOT with Navi Link system – which it said demonstrated excellent balance between helping the driver and preventing over-reliance. In Safety Backup, the car received an almost-perfect score of 93 percent.

On the ID.5, it said that the EV provides a high level of assistance to the driver, supporting many driving tasks on the highway. However, it also said that the system was held back by not promoting over-trust, which could lead to driver distraction. Since assessing the previous Polestar 2 model in 2021, Euro NCAP said that its P1.8 software update improved the rating of its system from Moderate to Good.

The Jaguar I-PACE was the oldest car in the program’s group of vehicles, which it motioned toward how rapidly this technology is improving. Its emphasis here was on Driver Engagement while it described the EV’s Vehicle Assistance and Safety Backup systems as being at a more limited level.

Genesis as a stand-alone brand has finally launched in the European market, having gone on sale in South Korea and the United States some five years earlier. The first two cars from this luxury brand of Hyundai – the G80 sedan and GV80 SUV – both impress with top Euro NCAP safety ratings. 

With head, chest and centre airbags, the GV80 scores full points for side impact protection, and the G80 is only a fraction of a point behind. Both cars also get full scores for child occupant protection and provide a full array of driver assistance systems to help prevent accidents in the first place. The GV80’s pedestrian protection is some way behind that of the G80 with its active hood, but is enough to secure a five-star rating.

In parallel with its safety testing, Euro NCAP has introduced a structured scoring and grading system focused on Assisted Driving solutions, divided into two main areas; Assistance Competence based on the balance between driver engagement and vehicle assistance, and Safety Backup.

The Mercedes-Benz GLE received top marks for its partially automated assistance system (SAE Level 2) with a “very good” rating. Veoneer is proud supplier of forward looking stereo cameras, ADAS ECU and corner radars (front and rear) to the Mercedes-Benz GLE SUV model’s Driving Assistance Package and the Driving Assistance Package Plus, which earned the top score of 174 points/200 possible points (87% of the total score) against nine competitors.

The Mercedes-Benz GLE specifically received the highest score in the “Driver Engagement” evaluation, which measures the intuitive and harmonious transition between system support and unsupported driving. 

Increasingly, vehicle manufacturers have been making use of the sensor-sets fitted to their cars to provide more extensive driving support, paving the way for an autonomous future. A prime example is Highway Assist, a technology designed to make motorway driving safer by reducing fatigue and encouraging safe driving. Highway Assist helps the driver to maintain a steady speed, to keep a safe distance from the car in front and to keep the vehicle in the centre of the lane by combining (intelligent) Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Lane Centering (LC). However, the driver always needs to be responsible and engaged behind the wheel, and the assisted system is there to do just that – assist. They are not flawless and should not lead or have full control.

Euro NCAP’s new assessment protocols focus on two main areas: Assistance Competence – a balance between the technical competencies of the system (Vehicle Assistance) and the extent to which it keeps the driver alert and engaged (Driver Engagement) – and Safety Backup, the car’s safety net in critical situations. A unique grading system – similar to the five- star safety rating – helps consumers understand the conclusions of the tests and compare assistance performance at the highest level. Each car falls into one of four categories: Entry, Moderate, Good and Very Good.

Three cars in the premium segment – the Mercedes-Benz GLE, the BMW 3 Series and the Audi Q8 – are graded ‘Very Good’, achieving a good balance between offering a high level of driving assistance but keeping the driver engaged and in control of the driving task. They also provide a good crash avoidance backup system and respond appropriately if the driver becomes incapacitated while the car is in assistance mode.

High volume sellers Renault Clio and Peugeot 2008 were both given an Entry grade. Lacking the sophistication of the more advanced systems tested, they provide a relatively modest level of assistance, ensuring that the driver is not disengaged from the driving task.

Tesla’s pioneering role in self-driving technology is reflected in its top scores for Vehicle Assistance and Safety Backup. However, its “Autopilot” system does little to keep the driver engaged. Its distinct steering strategy gives the impression that either the car is driving itself or the driver has full control, and the system is more authoritarian than cooperative. Grading- wise, the car is badly let down by its performance in Driver Engagement and ends up ranked ‘Moderate’. On the upside, Tesla offers over-the-air updates and can rapidly introduce performance improvements, as they have shown to be doing in recent years.

The Volkswagen Passat, the Nissan Juke and the Volvo V60 were also graded as Moderate. In particular, the Volvo, already on the market for a few years, shows that rapid advancements made in driving assistance technology require more frequent updates to keep up with premium cars. Finally, the Kuga achieves a Good grading, demonstrating that well- balanced, advanced systems are also available on mainstream mid-class vehicles.

Toyota’s fourth-generation Yaris emerges with flying colours from Euro NCAP’s 2020 test programme. The car is the first to be subjected to an all-new frontal offset test, which replaces the one previously used since the programme started in 1997, and is the first to feature a counter-measure for injuries in far-side impacts. The mobile progressive deformable barrier (MPDB) test assesses the protection a car offers its occupants as well as the risks it poses to the car it has crashed into. The Yaris, in general, does well, its small size and benign front end making it one of the less aggressive crash partners on the road. Two centre-mounted airbags inflate in side impacts to limit an occupants’ travel to the opposite side of the vehicle and to mitigate the risk of occupant to occupant contact. The Yaris also showcases the rapid advancements in crash avoidance technology: the latest generation of Toyota Safety Sense now can stop the vehicle during turning to avoid a crash with oncoming traffic.

Euro NCAP’s Secretary General, Michiel van Ratingen, said:”Congratulations to Toyota on a top rating for the Yaris. This has been a tough year for all concerned and I am grateful to Euro NCAP’s labs and employees who have worked hard to deliver safety, while staying safe. We have had to adapt quickly to new working practices, and it is pleasing that the first car rated this year should have gone so far to address the safety issues that are emerging as top priorities.”

In addition to this new assessment, Audi’s e-tron Sportback variant shares its stablemate’s 2019 five-star rating. And Renault’s hybrid variant of the Clio is also added to the list of 2019-rated vehicles, with similar performance to the combustion-engined car tested last year.

A key change is the implementation of a new moving barrier to moving car frontal crash test, replacing the regulation-based moderate offset-deformable barrier test, used by Euro NCAP for the last 23 years. This new crash test not only evaluates the protection of occupants inside the car, but also assesses how the cars’ front-end structurers contribute to injuries in the collision partner. Important innovations are the Mobile Progressive Deformable Barrier and the unique method to rate vehicle compatibility, as well as the first adoption of the world’s most advanced “THOR” mid-sized male crash test dummy.

Side impacts account for the second highest frequency of death or serious injuries. The latest updates to this area of the safety assessment include adjustments to the near-side barrier test speed and mass, increasing the severity of the test. More significantly, Euro NCAP will for the first time evaluate far-side impact protection, focussing on driver protection and the potential interaction between driver and front seat passenger. With the latter test, the protection offered by new-to-market countermeasures such as centre airbags can be adequately verified.

Euro NCAP continues to test the latest generation of crash prevention and driver assistance systems. New, challenging test scenarios are added to rate AEB technology for cars and vulnerable road users, including back over situations and turning at a crossing. In addition, the first step is taken to evaluate Driver Status Monitoring systems, designed to detect driver fatigue and distraction, as part of the Safety Assist assessment. 

Improving your car’s safety isn’t just about more airbags or better driver assistance systems. Post-crash safety too plays a vital role in crash survival. In partnership with CTIF, the International Association of Fire & Rescue Services, Euro NCAP developed new rating rules to promote better post-crash safety. Manufacturers will be rewarded when rescue information is accurate and easily available. Euro NCAP also checks ease of extrication, electric door handles, etc. and endorses advanced eCall functions.

These changes are the main pillars of Euro NCAP’s new 2020 protocols. The impact of these updates, as well some other minor changes, will be significant. Therefore, consumers must be careful when directly comparing the latest results with ratings from previous years. What stays the same is that only vehicles that perform excellently in crash protection, post-crash and crash avoidance – and the ones that car buyers should look out for – will achieve the top “five star” rating.

The worldwide pandemic has not been easy on the industry and Euro NCAP testing has been temporarily put on hold for the last few months. Stay tuned for new results after the summer!

DEKRA joins the programme to support new initiatives on commercial vehicle safety. For many decades, the DEKRA Accident Research team has been involved in analysing real-life crashes, including those involving commercial vehicles. DEKRA’s own independent Technology Test Center will be an important building block for translating these findings of accident research into measures to increase road safety.

GDV, notably the German Insurers Accident Research Unit (UDV), aims to improve road safety in Germany and helps to prevent accidents or at least mitigate the effects of crashes. By providing up to date accident data and the outcome of safety research, UDV supports Euro NCAP’s protocol development and long-term strategy, especially regarding the human factors and driving functions for assisted and automated vehicles.

Automobile clubs ÖAMTC and TCS have joined the new “Green NCAP” initiative as supporter and emission test facilities, in cooperation with their test partners IFA and EMPA, respectively. Both organizations have longstanding experience and excellent test expertise with regards to technical compliance emissions and pollutants testing and have been involved in crafting the unique Green NCAP test and assessment protocols from the beginning. The affiliate membership formalizes their respective roles, enabling them to effectively drive vehicle improvements and create value for their members.

A five-star rating in Euro NCAP crash testing represents a glowing endorsement of the effectiveness of a vehicle’s integrated safety concept, which – in the new BMW 3 Series, as in other models – encompasses both the body structure and the restraint systems. Supporting structures with a weight-optimised design and a high load-bearing capacity combine with precisely engineered deformation paths in the new 3 Series to provide the ideal basis for preserving the passenger cell’s rigidity in various types of collision – i.e. for keeping the occupants’ survival space intact. In Euro NCAP testing, the aluminium/high-strength steel safety passenger cell of the new BMW 3 Series proved to be extremely robust – both in the frontal and side collisions and the side pole impact. In a frontal collision, the forces acting on the vehicle are diverted via multiple load paths in the floor assembly, side frame, bulkhead and roof, and absorbed by large deformation zones. Reinforced side structures in the B-pillars and side sill areas, high-strength side impact members in the doors and sturdy seat cross-members protect the occupants in the event of a side-on collision. The seats and head restraints have been specially designed to minimise the risk of whiplash injuries resulting from a collision against the rear of the vehicle. Strengthened pillars and roof members ensure that the passenger cell retains its rigidity if the car rolls over.

Central safety electronics control the functioning of the various restraint systems fitted in the new BMW 3 Series. This means the three-point inertia-reel seatbelts on all seats deploy as part of a precisely coordinated response with the front, side and head airbags – according to the type of impact and its severity. The testers’ evaluation of the crash test results revealed that the new BMW 3 Series offers exceptionally high levels of protection for adult occupants, with an almost perfect score of 97 per cent. They are therefore protected from injury to an outstanding degree, regardless of their height or the seat’s position.

The levels of safety for children also impressed the test team. ISOFIX child seat attachments for the outer seats in the rear of the new BMW 3 Series make this an extremely safe place for children to travel. With the relevant seat systems fitted for six- and ten-year-old passengers respectively, the readings showed the test dummies were exposed to extremely modest loads in both the frontal and side crashes. The new 3 Series scored 23.8 out of a maximum 24 points for this criterion.

Evaluating the protective measures for vulnerable road users (such as pedestrians and cyclists), also forms part of Euro NCAP crash testing. The new BMW 3 Series reduces the risk of injury to these groups with carefully contoured body elements and flexible structures around its front end. It also has an active bonnet, whose pyrotechnic release mechanism is triggered as soon as the sensor data indicates a relevant type of collision. This raises the bonnet, creating a deformation zone that prevents direct impact with unyielding components in the engine compartment.

The extensive active safety features fitted as standard on the new BMW 3 Series are another factor in its five-star rating. The collision and pedestrian warning with braking function managed to safely avert a collision in all test scenarios, earning it maximum points in the assessment. This technology forms part of the standard Active Guard system that also comprises Lane Departure Warning with lane return and the Speed Limit Display road sign detection system with no-overtaking indicator. Standard specification for the 3 Series also includes DSC (Dynamic Stability Control), a tyre pressure indicator showing the pressures for each wheel, the Attentiveness Assistant and intelligent emergency call with BMW Accident Assistance.

The Tesla Model 3 made a strong debut with a perfect score in the frontal offset deformable barrier crash test, a mainstay of Euro NCAP’s assessment since its inception in 1997. Its performance in the Safety Assist tests particularly impressed, thanks to its superb driver assistance systems like lane support, speed assist and autonomous emergency braking. The Tesla’s 94 percent score in 2019 Safety Assist tests is the best yet under Euro NCAP’s most recent protocol.

Another novice, Skoda’s new Scala, positioned between consumer favourites Fabia and Octavia, just pips the Model 3 in overall crash performance, with a 97 percent score in Adult Occupant Protection. This firmly puts the Scala amongst the top small-family cars tested by Euro NCAP for this part of the assessment, along with the recently tested Mercedes-Benz A-Class and Mazda 3.

With B-Class and GLE ratings, Mercedes-Benz is continuing its winning streak with its 10th and 11th solid 5-star result since 2014, underscoring that its safety reputation still is non-negotiable.

Euro NCAP’s testing procedures become more demanding each year as the safety body increases the number of tests and the their rigorousness. All aspects of the vehicle are examined, measuring the ability to protect both adult and child occupants, vulnerable road users while also evaluating more advanced safety assist systems.

And SEAT’s flagship model, the Tarraco SUV, achieved the highest level of safety possible in the consumer protection body’s series of tests.

The Tarraco went through a meticulous set of tests to determine its safety credentials. Adult occupant protection is established through tests including frontal impacts that use a 40% overlap and a full-width rigid barrier as well as a side barrier and pole impact. Added to this are whiplash tests and autonomous emergency braking, (AEB), tested across a wide range of speeds and vehicle overlaps.

For child occupant protection three main aspects are assessed: the protection from the restraint system, how well the vehicle accommodates child restraint systems of various sizes and, finally, provisions in the vehicle for the safe transport of children.

The SEAT Tarraco wasn’t just developed to protect those inside the vehicle, a huge amount of importance was placed on safeguarding vulnerable road users too. Euro NCAP’s test also looks at the potential risk of injury to a pedestrian or cyclist’s head, pelvis and legs and what can be done to mitigate or prevent any impact.

Add to this the assessment of the most important driver assist technologies to support the driver, and how they may improve safety, and Euro NCAP’s programme is all-encompassing.

On each occasion the organisation judged that occupants and road users were well protected should an accident occur; The SEAT Tarraco scored 97% for adult protection, 84% for child occupant, 79% for vulnerable road users and 79% for safety assist.