ANCAP has awarded five-star safety ratings to two new SUVs entering the Australian and New Zealand markets – the Denza B8 plug-in hybrid and the all-electric Hyundai Elexio – under its 2023–2025 assessment criteria.

The ratings reflect continued improvements in both occupant protection and active safety systems, with ANCAP noting that both vehicles are equipped with comprehensive autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and lane support technologies as standard.

The Hyundai Elexio Medium SUV achieved strong results across all four key assessment areas. It recorded an Adult Occupant Protection score of 92 per cent and Child Occupant Protection of 87 per cent. Its Vulnerable Road User Protection score reached 83 per cent, while Safety Assist systems were rated at 85 per cent.

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ANCAP said the Elexio performed particularly well in AEB scenarios involving other vehicles, including motorcycles. The rating follows a review of technical evidence and crash data shared with the closely related Kia EV5, with ANCAP confirming that destructive crash test results from the EV5 were applicable to the Elexio.

The Denza B8 also secured a five-star result, building on assessment of its related model, the Denza B5, which was rated in late 2025. ANCAP evaluated extensive technical documentation and test data to confirm comparable crash performance between the two vehicles.

The B8 recorded an Adult Occupant Protection score of 87 per cent and Child Occupant Protection of 89 per cent. Vulnerable Road User Protection was assessed at 75 per cent following additional front-end testing to account for design differences, while Safety Assist systems achieved 79 per cent.

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ANCAP Chief Executive Officer Carla Hoorweg said buyers increasingly expect strong safety performance regardless of powertrain type.

“These five-star results demonstrate solid occupant protection combined with advanced crash avoidance technology,” she said.

Both ratings apply to all variants of the Denza B8 and Hyundai Elexio currently on sale in Australia and New Zealand, reinforcing the growing availability of high safety standards across electric and hybrid SUVs.