Safest cars to buy in the UK: Mercedes, Audi, VW

From the Mercedes E-Class to the Volkswagen Passat, we reveal the 10 safest cars on the road in 2024.

When the time comes to purchase a new car, you want to think about more than simply how many miles to the gallon you’re going to get.

How safe the vehicle is, and how well it will protect its occupants ‒ and other road users ‒ from being caught up in an accident is also of crucial importance.

One way of getting some insight into the safety of a vehicle you’re considering buying comes via the testing conducted by safety experts at Euro NCAP. 

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What does Euro NCAP look for?

Cars are subjected to a host of tests and scored on how they perform against four categories.

Those are adult occupant protection, child occupant protection, pedestrian protection, and safety assist, which is an assessment of the technology included in the vehicle.

Those scores are then brought together to produce an overall rating out of 400.

It’s worth noting that Euro NCAP revamped its testing last year and now includes scenarios to monitor how effectively cars avoid collisions with vulnerable road users and motorcyclists in certain situations.

This includes alerts at junctions when a vehicle turns right, or when it crosses the path of an oncoming vehicle.

The experts at What Car? have crunched the numbers of the tests to establish the safest models around, which we’ve run through below. 

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1 – Mercedes E-Class

Coming top of the tables, Mercedes E-Class scored 353 out of 400.

When it comes to protecting adult occupants, it scored an impressive 92%, with child occupant protection at 90%.

Figures for pedestrians came in lower at 84% and safety assist stood at 87%.

In particular, the researchers praised the E-Class for its autonomous emergency braking system, which detects and responds to possible collisions with pedestrians, motorcyclists and cyclists.

2 – Zeekr X

With an overall score of 348, the Zeekr X took second place.

As well as scoring a commendable 91% in the adult protection category, it offered 90% protection for children.

In terms of pedestrian protection and safety assist, the model scored 84% and 83%.

During the testing, its autonomous energy brakes prevented crashes with cyclists in every scenario.

The Zeekr X also gained top scores in the side impact crash test and offers strong protection for other road users.

3 – Volkswagen ID 7

With a score of 346, the ID 7 has made several key improvements on previous versions.

These include enhancements to active driver systems, particularly lane keeping assistance.

Additionally, it performed well in scenarios aimed at protecting vulnerable road users. For example, its pop-up bonnet could reduce head injuries to cyclists and pedestrians in the event of an accident.

Overall, adult protection scores came in at 95% and child protection rated 88%, with pedestrian protection at 88% and safety assist at 80%.

Joint 4^th – NIO ET5

Often billed as NIO’s answer to the Tesla Model 3, this electric saloon took joint fourth place, with an impressive 345 out of 400.

As What Car? points out, its adult occupant protection is “exemplary”, coming in at 96%.

Where children are concerned, it garnered 85%, with pedestrian protection at 83% and 81%.

Although the model works well at spotting pedestrians and children in daylight, the researchers found that its system for identifying cyclists pedalling beside the car was less effective.

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Also bagging fourth place was this wider coupe version of the electric SUV, which the researchers describe as promising a slightly sportier drive and a sleeker roof line that doesn’t significantly compromise practicality”.

Adult protection scores were at 90% and child protection came in at 86%.

When it comes to pedestrian and safety assist, the model racked up 84% and 85%.

The researchers were impressed by the driver monitoring system, which spots problems with attention and tiredness.

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Joint 6^th – Audi Q6 e-tron

Scoring 344 out of 400, the Q6 fared particularly well in terms of protecting child occupants, with a score of 92%.

While its score for adults came in at 91%, it did fall slightly behind on pedestrian protection (81%) and safety assist (80%).

In one particularly welcome feature, the electric SUV has a ‘child presence’ detection system.

As one potential shortcoming, the researchers pointed out that the model’s safety features fared less well in an oncoming collision with another car.

Joint 6^th – Zeekr 001

With a score of 344, the 001 performed well in frontal crash scenarios, as well as getting full marks in tests related to collisions with a side barrier.

Digging down into the details, adult occupancy scores were 89%, child occupant protection stood at 88%, pedestrian protect was 84% and safety assist came in at 83%.

The 001 also has an alert to inform parents if a child has been left in the car by mistake.

While the model has a driver monitoring system, it only picks up on fatigue, and not distraction.

Joint 8^th – Mercedes EQE

Describing the EQE as a “great safety all-rounder”, the researchers from What Car? were especially impressed by its safety features for child occupants.

This includes a child presence detection system and an automatic front passenger airbag deactivation system.

As the researchers point out, most systems need to be manually adjusted to accommodate a child seat safely.

Overall scores were 87% for adult protection and 90% for child occupants, with pedestrian ratings of 80% and safety assist at 85%.

Joint 8^th – Skoda Superb

Scoring 342 out of 400, the Superb racked up an impressive 93% for adult protection and 87% for children, largely due to its protection for all critical body parts.

When it came to pedestrians and safety assist, the model came in at 82% and 80% respectively.

The researchers also found the model’s active safety systems performed well at avoiding accidents with pedestrians and gained top marks for their response to motorcyclists and pedestrians.

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Joint 8^th Volkswagen Passat

Praising the Passat as “comfortable, refined and hugely practical”, the researchers also found that it rated highly in terms of safety features.

With a combined score of 342, the state car scored 93% for adult protection, 87% for its child features, 82% on pedestrian protection and 80% on safety assist.

In particular, What Car? noted its emergency braking system was effective at detecting pedestrians and cyclists in order to avoid an impact.

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