Euro NCAP has revealed that three vehicles tested in 2016 have been awarded “Best in Class” status for safety.
The Belgium-based safety assessment authority says it crash-tested only 18 new passenger vehicles this year. Interesting, this figure is far smaller than last year’s, when as many as 40 vehicles were evaluated (across eight categories).
In 2016, the Toyota Prius took “Best in Class” honours in the large family car category, the Hyundai Ioniq topped the small family car segment and the Volkswagen Tiguan was rated the safest small off-roader.
The Mercedes-Benz E-Class, meanwhile, performed well in testing, but since it was the only car assessed in the executive car category in 2016, Euro NCAP couldn’t exactly award it “Best in Class” honours.
Euro NCAP says its “Best in Class” awards take into account only cars with standard safety equipment, although several manufacturers took advantage of the new dual-rating system in 2016. In addition to a star rating indicating the safety of a car with only standard safety equipment, this second rating demonstrates the benefits of optional safety equipment.
This year also saw the introduction of a few changes to Euro NCAP’s ratings scheme, including the addition of tests for pedestrian-detecting autobrake systems.
Watch the three class winners being evaluated in the video below…
