The safest car in 2015 on UK roads was the Volvo XC90 large off-roader, according to safety organisation Euro NCAP.
The testing body revealed that as well as being the safest large off-roader, the Volvo achieved the best overall performance rating – scoring 97% for adult occupant protection and 100% for the effectiveness of its safety assistance systems.
The Mercedes-Benz GLC was the best small off-roader of 2015, while in the large family car category, the Jaguar XE and Toyota Avensis earned identical results with the Jaguar taking top honours in this section as its safety equipment is standard while some of the Toyota’s driver assistance technology is optional.
The best performing small family car was the Infiniti Q30, with strong performance in all areas of assessment. The Q30’s active bonnet – which pops up in the event of a collision with a pedestrian to cushion the impact – helped it to gain strong results for pedestrian protection, which were amongst the best of 2015, and it performed well in all other areas too, Euro NCAP said.
Meanwhile, two cars topped the leaderboard in the small car category with the same overall safety score. The Honda Jazz and the Suzuki Vitara were neck and neck overall, however, the Jazz got the nod as Euro NCAP’s Best in Class, thanks to Honda’s advanced safety systems being fitted as standard.
The VW Touran was the best performing small MPV while Ford’s Galaxy/S-max duo just beat the Renault Espace – which is not sold in the UK – for top place in the large MPV category.
While none of the tested roadsters could achieve five stars – mainly due to lacking new avoidance technology – the four-star winning Mazda MX5 was its safest roadster.