The Safest Cars of 2024 Named

The organisations tasked with evaluating the safety of new cars in Australia and Europe have revealed the safest cars of 2024.

While closely aligned, the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) and the European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP) often test different vehicles under slightly different parameters.

In Australia, a podium finish was announced, with China’s Zeekr X receiving third place with an overall weighted score of 87.4 per cent.

In second place was Japan’s Mazda CX-80, which inched ahead of the Zeekr with a total score of 87.6 per cent.

Taking the top spot in Australia was another popular model from Japan, the Toyota Camry, which ranked highest with an overall weighted score of 88.4 per cent.

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Euro NCAP took a slightly different approach, with five cars being named across five categories – revealing the Best in Class for Small SUV, Large Family Car, Large SUV, and Pure Electric, as well as the overall winner, named Best Performer.

The Zeekr X nabbed two wins, winning both Best in Class Small SUV and Pure Electric, thanks to its safety ratings of 91 per cent for Adult Occupant, 90 per cent for Child Occupant, 84 per cent for Vulnerable Road User (pedestrians and cyclists), and 83 per cent for Safety Assist.

Equal in the Best in Class Large Family Car were the closely-related Skoda Superb and Volkswagen Passat, which are based on the same Volkswagen Group platform.

They each scored 93, 87, 82, and 80 per cent, respectively – with the 93 for Adult Occupant being the highest of any scoring category across the group.

Japan’s Mazda CX-80 took another gong, winning Best in Class Large SUV, with 92, 88, 84, and 79 per cent respectively.

But the Best Performer was awarded to the German Mercedes-Benz E-Class, which scored 92 per cent for Adult Occupant, 90 per cent for Child Occupant, 84 per cent for Vulnerable Road User, and 87 per cent for Safety Assist.