- In this report
- Overview
- Would you buy your car again?
- Best & worst for overall safety
- Most overlooked cars
- Best overall fuel economy
- Best cars under $20,000
- Most & least expensive to own
- Best all-season tires
- Best & worst values
- Best & worst performers
Best & worst for overall safety
Last reviewed: April 2010
This article appeared in We determine overall safety scores by combining government and insurance-industry crash-test scores with accident-avoidance results such as braking and emergency handling from our tests. Points are deducted if electronic stability control is not standard. The score is calculated only for test vehicles with offset-frontal and side-crash results. The best models all have top safety Ratings (available to subscribers) in their category.
Best for overall safety
Small cars
- Kia Soul
- Mazda3
- Subaru Impreza/Outback Sport
- Toyota Prius
- Volkswagen Golf
- Volvo C30
Family & upscale cars
- Acura TL
- Acura TSX
- Audi A3
- Audi A4
- BMW 3 Series
- Chevrolet Malibu
- Honda Accord
- Mercedes-Benz C-Class
- Subaru Legacy
- Volkswagen CC
- Volkswagen Passat
Large & luxury sedans
- Acura RL
- Audi A6
- Cadillac CTS
- Hyundai Genesis
Small SUVs
- Honda CR-V
- Mitsubishi Outlander
- Nissan Rogue
- Subaru Forester
- Volkswagen
- Tiguan
Midsized SUVs
- Acura MDX
- Acura RDX
- Audi Q5
- BMW X3
- BMW X5
- Buick Enclave
- Chevrolet Equinox
- GMC Terrain
- Hyundai Santa Fe
- Infiniti EX
- Lexus RX
- Mercedes-Benz M-Class
- Toyota Venza
- Volvo XC60
- Volvo XC90
...and the worst
- Chevrolet Aveo sedan
- Hyundai Accent
- Kia Rio
- Scion tC
- Dodge Dakota
