These are the safest cars to have a crash in

The Mercedes-Benz CLA, Tesla Model X and Tesla Model 3 are the safest new cars of 2019 according to the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP).

Swoopy styling hasn’t hampered the CLA, with its overall score of 90.2 percent helping it claim the title as the highest-rated car of 2019 followed by the Model X (89.6 percent) and Model 3 (89.4 percent).

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All three stacked up well against the Euro NCAP scoring system, too, with the CLA branded the safest small family car, while the Tesla took out the large off-road and hybrid and electric categories with the Model X and Model 3 respectively.

According to ANCAP Chief Executive, James Goodwin, the Tesla Model X scored remarkably high for occupant protection.

“The Model X received a record-equalling high score of 98 percent for Adult Occupant Protection, with full points awarded for the protection of the driver in all four of the full-scale crash tests – frontal offset, full-width, side impact, and oblique pole,” Goodwin said.

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The car in which the Model X shares that record with is the Mazda 3, which also scored an impressive 98 percent for occupant safety followed by the BMW 3 Series with 97 percent.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the top-two offenders in this regard are the Jeep Wrangler at 60 percent and the Suzuki Jimny with 73 percent.

Safety systems, like AEB, either aid or hamper a particular car’s score palpably – this is an area where the Teslas excelled.

“Both the Model X and Model 3 achieved the highest Safety Assist scores recorded to date at 94 percent – well ahead of all others rated this year [2019],” Goodwin said.

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Interestingly, given the Japanese marque is the highest-selling brand in Australia, Toyota claimed four of the 10 overall categories.

Of note is the HiAce, the first commercial van to be tested by ANCAP, which performed “exceptionally well against the stringent 2019 criteria”, while the top-selling Hilux reigned supreme in the utility segment.

In total, 40 cars were tested down under in 2019 with 33 of them achieving the sought after five-star rating.

Globally, 55 cars were assessed by Euro NCAP in 2019, with 41 of those vehicles achieving a five-star safety rating by the international body.

TOP PERFORMERS BY CATEGORY ACCORDING TO ANCAP