EURO NCAP, the people paid to crash cars so your next new vehicle is safer for you, your passengers and other road users, have released their latest batch of test results, writes William Scholes.
The organisation has put seven new models through their paces, awarding each a star rating. Five secured the top five-star rating, with the remaining two getting four stars.
Alfa Romeo's all-new Tonale SUV - the Italian brand's first new car since the larger Stelvio arrived in 2016 - won five stars.
Euro NCAP noted that the Alfa earned the top rating despite lacking airbags in the centre of the cabin and "proving to be an aggressive collision partner in frontal crashes".
"Overall, the SUV performs well in car-to-car and car-to-vulnerable road user crash avoidance tests and it offers an attention assist system that can detect driver drowsiness," said Euro NCAP.
Another all-new model given the crash-and-bash treatment was the Toyota Aygo X. The old Aygo was part of a joint venture that saw it built alongside the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1.
Toyota has gone it alone this time, giving the little city car a smidgen of SUV attitude - thus the 'X' suffix - and a steeper price than before. You'll need nearly £15k to get into one now…
Small cars can struggle in the Euro NCAP test - their size and the fact they're usually lower priced, thus do without some more expensive safety tech, counts against them - but the Aygo X has gained a highly credible four-star rating.
No such size or price excuses can be made for BMW's all-electric i4, which got a four-star rating. The Tesla Model 3 rival is equipped with "a similar sensor set to the BMW 3 Series", explained Euro NCAP, and so "missed out on some critical crash avoidance points". "Luxury does not always mean better safety performance," it added.
It was better news for Kia's deeply impressive new Sportage SUV. Like the latest Hyundai Tucson with which it shares a platform, the Sportage is a five-star car. Expect Kia and Hyundai to sell these fine family cars by the bucket load.
The people from Kia were pleased by Euro NCAP's verdict. Alexandre Papapetropoulos from Kia Europe said: "The new Sportage is the modern reinvention of one of Kia's most iconic models and has become our best-performing model year to date.
"The goal of further optimising the car's safety credentials shaped the development process from the outset.
"With a five-star Euro NCAP rating, new Sportage customers can be assured that its robust structure and modern assistive technologies will maximise the safety of occupants and other road users at all times."
The all-electric Cupra Born, which is marketed as a sportier take on the same set of components found under the Volkswagen ID3, got five stars too.
"Cupra is committed not only to bring emotions to the electric world, but also the highest safety standards to the market," said Dr Werner Tietz from the car-maker.
"We've proven this before with Cupra Formentor and Cupra Leon, and now we've continued our commitment to safety with the Cupra Born's five-star rating."
Rounding off the latest set of results were Mercedes-Benz duo of the Citan Tourer and T-Class. These are van-based MPVs, and share a platform with the Renault Kangoo. Mercedes, however, has upgraded the safety kit, giving its version a centre airbag and "high performing active safety features", securing the cars' five-star ratings.
