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safest cars
Revealed: The 10 safest cars of the year
These are the cars up for the What Car? Safety Award 2018.
THATCHAM RESEARCH HAS revealed the ten cars that have made the longlist for the hotly contested What Car? Safety Award 2018.
This year, vehicles must have standard-fit Lane Keep Assist systems, to help avoid some of the most dangerous collision types. Lane Keep Assist systems actively steer vehicles away from road edges and lane markings to prevent dangerous ‘run-off road’ and head-on accidents.
The top ten cars also have standard-fit Autonomous Emergency Braking systems, which operate at city and motorway speeds and can detect pedestrians. In addition, judges will give extra merit to vehicles with AEB systems that can identify cyclists and other vulnerable road users.
Matthew Avery, director of research at Thatcham Research says:
Drivers buying a new car should expect AEB on their vehicle. It’s now an essential standard-fit safety system, just like the seatbelt.And if the car doesn’t have AEB? Walk away and find one which does.
The judges will also examine the relative performance of differing AEB systems, and other car safety technologies such as: Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Blind Spot Indication System (BLIS), Cyclist AEB, Driver Monitoring and Rear Cross Traffic Alert.
Avery continues:
The future of car safety is in the technology. A five-star Euro NCAP rating guarantees drivers a safe car. But some are still safer than others and this award is about celebrating those carmakers who continue to push the boundaries of safety, going above and beyond even the exacting levels that a five-star Euro NCAP rating demands.
The 10 cars the judges will consider for the What Car? Safety Award 2018 in alphabetical order:
- Honda Civic – read our Honda Civic review.
- Mercedes-Benz X-Class
- Subaru Impreza
- Subaru XV
- Toyota C-HR – read our review here.
- Opel Insignia – read our review here.
- Volvo S90 / V90
- Volvo XC60 – read our review here.
- Volkswagen Arteon – read our review here.
- Volkswagen T-Roc – read our review here.
Steve Huntingford, What Car? editor said: “Consumers can be confident that they’re buying the safest possible new car if they pick one from the top 10.”
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