Safest Cars 2024

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) work with the automotive industry to constantly improve safety standards, producing various tests to score the safest cars. The NHTSA's Five Star safety rating helps consumers make smart decisions regarding safety when choosing a new vehicle. It began testing frontal impact protection using data from crash test dummies in 1978 and began testing and rating vehicles for side impact in 1996. 

It began testing for resistance to roll over crashes in 2000 and has been instrumental in helping car makers to produce vehicles with crash avoidance technology. In fact, the NHTSA has added automatic emergency braking to its list of recommended technologies to reduce the impact speed of rear end crashes, making this technology standard by 2022. 

Pure fun to drive, the Integra is a sporty four-door, front-wheel drive premium hatchback with sharp steering and handling. A turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine and CVT transmission is a perfect fit to this striking sedan. Zero to 60mph happens in 7-seconds. The NHTSA gave it a Five Star Safety Rating. Standard driver assist features include a rearview camera, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning with lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, road departure mitigation, traffic sign recognition, and rear-seat alert. Available features include rain-sensing wipers, parking sensors, and head-up display. 

MSRP starts at $33,595. 

Elegant design and high-end tech make the A7 a truly great mid-size luxury hatchback sedan. Audi's Quattro all-wheel drive system comes standard and includes a 335-horsepower turbocharged V6 and seven-speed dual clutch automatic transmission. Stunning build quality, fit and finish married to sporty handling makes this Audi a winner. Advanced driver assistance features include automated emergency braking, forward collision warning, and lane-keep assist as standard. Surround-view cameras, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go technology and night vision, blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert, traffic sign recognition, and park assist are available. 

MSRP starts at $73,095. 

The G80 is all about luxury in a stylish package. The big sedan offers two engine options in a 300-horsepower turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four or a 375-hp twin-turbo 3.6-liter V6. Both come with an eight-speed automative transmission and all-wheel drive. The V6 can hit 60mph in 4.9 seconds. It earned a high Good rating from the IIHS in all four crash tests and a Five Star rating from the NHTSA. Standard driver assist features include a rearview camera, parking sensors, blind spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keep assist, forward collision warning, pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning and lane-keep assist, highway driving assist, adaptive crise control, and traffic-sign recognition.  A head up display, surround-view cameras, remote parking assist is optional. 

MSRP starts at $55,650. 

The EV6 offers a great EV driving experience with a styling refresh for 2025, the Long Range version will take you 300 miles before you need to charge up and the top-of-the-line GT model gives you a zippy 576-horsepower as well as a limited-slip differential, adaptive suspension, and massive brakes. Known for top rated safety scores, the EV6 comes standard with automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning with pedestrian detection, cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, highway driving assist, lane-departure warning and lane-keep assist, driver attention monitoring, rearview camera, and parking sensors. You can upgrade to include surround view cameras, remote parking assist, reverse emergency braking, automatic lane change, evasive steering assist and more. 

STARTING MSRP $44,000. 

A truly great and safe compact car, the Mazda3 is a bargain with its premium interior and driving refinement for under $26K. Available in sedan and hatchback versions, choose between a 191-horsepower 2.5-liter four cylinder or a 250-hp turbocharged 2.5-liter engine. A six-speed manual or automatic transmission adds to the options. Top Safety Ratings and such safety features as a rearview camera, driver-attention monitor, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, Lane-departure warning and lane-keep assist, rain-sensing wipers, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert all come standard. You can also add a head-up display, traffic-sign recognition, surround view cameras, and traffic-jam assist. 

MSRP starts at $25,355. 

All-new for 2024, the sixth generation Impreza is a compact sedan with Subaru's standard all-wheel drive. It has earned top ratings from both the NHTSA and the IIHS. With a quiet cabin, stiffer body and improved suspension, choose between a 152-horsepower 2.0-liter flat four engine or a larger 2.5-liter 182-hp boxer powertrain. All versions of the sedan come with Subaru's EyeSight driver assist technology including rearview camera, adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, lane-departure warning with lane-keep assist as standard. Upgrades include blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, reverse automatic emergency braking, and adaptive LED headlights. 

MSRP starts at $24,115. 

Somewhere between and mid-size and full-size luxury sedan, the S90 brings two all-wheel drive powertrains to the party, both offer four-cylinder gas motors; one is a 48-volt hybrid, and the Recharge PHEV will take you 38 miles on electricity only. A rich wood and leather interior adds to the charm and the V90 version is an actual station wagon. Known worldwide for safety, the Volvo comes with an impressive list of driver assist features including a rearview camera, adaptive headlights, automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning, lane-departure warning and lane-keep assist, traffic-sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, surround-view cameras, and pilot assist. 

MSRP starts at $59,495.