MG 4 achieves top marks in crash safety test

Safety body Euro NCAP has crash tested another 14 new cars including new models from MG, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Ford, with many of these achieving top marks.

In what is surely the last batch of Euro NCAP results this year, eleven models, including several that have either just arrived in the UK or are set to go on sale, have been awarded full five-star ratings as several manufacturers continue to up the industry standards for accident safety and assistance technology.

Perhaps the most interesting result for UK buyers published in this round of tests, the new all-electric MG 4 has received a full-five star rating from Euro NCAP – the first five-star rating budget brand MG has been awarded since 2019.

While the hatchback’s scores are not class-leading, it received respectable scores in each category, the highest being its adult occupant crash safety score of 83%.

Euro NCAP has also managed to get its hands on the next-generation Mercedes-Benz GLC before it has arrived on UK roads. The SUV also received top marks, with impressive scores for its adult (92%) and child occupant safety (90%) in the event of a crash.

The brand-new Lexus RX was also crash tested – its 91% safety assistance technology score being the highlight of its five-star rating.

After Euro NCAP put the new Range Rover through its paces last month, the safety body picked the Discovery Sport out of the Land Rover catalogue to test in this latest safety assessment batch. First tested around the time of its first release back in 2015, the safety body has renewed the Land Rover’s five-star rating, its highest individual score being its child occupant safety score of 89%.

This batch of tests includes several people carrier models, including the new all-electric Volkswagen ID. Buzz, which is highlighted for its stand-out occupant safety and safety assistance technology scores.

That said, its vulnerable road users protection score of 60% was not all that impressive, Euro NCAP commenting that some areas of the car’s front end offered poor protection for pedestrians and cyclists in the event of a road accident. The Volkswagen Touran people carrier was also retested, and has been downgraded to a four-star rating.

An upcoming leftfield alternative to the ID. Buzz, the electric Maxus MIFA 9 was also awarded top marks after its assessment, with equally impressive individual scores.

Now on to the off-roaders – the closely-related Ford Ranger and Volkswagen Amarok pickups were awarded identical five-star ratings. Both received high occupant safety and safety assistance tech scores, with pedestrian and cyclist protection described as “adequate”.

On sale for two years now, the Ford Puma has been tested once again. It’s clear that Euro NCAP’s assessments have gotten tougher since its last test, as the small SUV has been downgraded to a four-star rating.

The Skoda Octavia was also retested, and although some of its individual scores have dropped, it retains its five-star rating.

The new Peugeot 408 also missed out on full marks, achieving a four-star rating, and Euro NCAP has announced that Citroën C4‘s four-star assessment that was conducted in May last year now also stands for the newer C4 X.

Finally, this batch of tests also included models from two lesser-known brands in the UK. The electric Lucid Air saloon – expected to challenge the likes of the Tesla Model S if and when it arrives in the UK – achieved an impressive five-star rating. The Chery OMODA5 SUV was awarded top marks, but is not expected to arrive in the UK anytime soon.