Mazda CX-80
AO: 92% CO: 88% VRU: 84% SA: 79%
If you want a really posh-feeling large SUV but don’t fancy opting for one of the premium brands, then the Mazda CX-80 is a great option – and as you’d hope for a family-oriented SUV, it returned impressive scores in Euro NCAP’s safety testing.
With a top result of 92% for adult occupant protection, 88% for child occupants, and 84% and 79% for vulnerable road users and safety assist tech respectively, the CX-80 is the safest seven-seater tested in 2024, so even large families can be assured that there’s a model out there for them.
The CX-80’s safety tech doesn’t do anything particularly clever, but Mazda is known for building its cars to be very stiff and strong – this not only improves their handling but makes them perform well in crash testing too.
There’s plenty else to recommend the CX-80, too. While its plug-in hybrid engine is rather clunky and not too efficient, the other option available is a 3.3-litre six-cylinder diesel engine. That might sound like a product of a bygone age, but it’s actually incredibly clean, very economical and fantastic to drive. It suits the big Mazda very well indeed.
The interior feels like a million bucks thanks to great material choices and a simple, clean design that doesn’t just add technology in for the sake of it. While the third row isn’t as roomy as you’d find in something like a Land Rover Discovery, there’s still space for adults to get comfy back there – and you can even opt for a luxurious six-seater layout with captain’s chairs in the middle.
Porsche Macan Electric
AO: 90% CO: 90% VRU: 83% SA: 78%
Sharing its mechanical underpinnings and battery system with the Audi Q6 e-tron means the Porsche Macan is similarly sophisticated – but it’s different enough for Euro NCAP to test separately. Its scores were very similar to the Audis, unsurprisingly, but just a few clicks lower.
The Macan returned 90% scores in both adult and child protection, along with ratings of 83% and 78% for the vulnerable road user and safety assist categories.
The Macan Electric gets all the standard, mandated safety tech, but Porsche allows you to curate your car more than most manufacturers. You don’t even get adaptive cruise control as standard – it’s an optional extra, so you can really pick and choose which features you’ll actually use and which ones will just annoy you.
The surround-view cameras – another option – are an option box well worth ticking, we’d say, as are the very sophisticated Matrix LED headlights. Neither of these are particularly expensive (by Porsche standards, anyway).
Other features include the same kind of passenger display as you get in the Q6, which is cleverly invisible to the driver when displaying certain content. One safety feature that all Porsche models have built-in is their handling – they’re incredibly direct and responsive, so should you find yourself needing to react quickly to a situation on the roa you’ll find the car very supportive of your movements.
Cupra Tavascan
AO: 89% CO: 86% VRU: 80% SA: 79%
The Cupra Tavascan is the Spanish performance brand’s version of the Volkswagen ID5, Audi Q4 Sportback e-Tron or Skoda Enyaq Coupe. As a result, it shares the same mechanicals, chassis, battery pack and motors as those cars.
All of those vehicles have five-star Euro NCAP ratings so it’s perhaps not surprising that the Tavascan returned impressive scores too. It totted up scores of 89% in adult occupant protection, 86% in child occupant protection, 80% in the vulnerable road user category and 79% for its safety assistance tech.
The Tavascan’s sister cars have been criticised in the past for needlessly complicated touchscreen systems that drive the entire interior, but the Tavascan’s display is a big improvement on previous Cupra systems. You’ll still take your eyes off the road perhaps a fraction more than you’d like, but excellent voice control systems and the ability to pin your most-used functions as shortcuts does go some way to addressing this.
The Tavascan’s stylish silhouette, more-than-usable range and charging speeds and generally inoffensive driving dynamics – combined with much better looks than most of its siblings – mean it’s well worth considering if you’re after a practical family EV.
Toyota C-HR
AO: 85% CO: 86% VRU: 86% SA: 79%
The Toyota C-HR’s new Prius-inspired look and optional two-tone paint makes it a comparative supermodel of the small SUV class – it really stands out in a crowd, something you couldn’t really have said about its predecessor no matter how hard it tried.
It’s good to know that the C-HR is a safe car, too, with scores of 85%, 86%, 86% and 79% in Euro NCAP’s four safety testing categories.
It does come in for a bit of criticism right off the bat, though, as to deactivate or otherwise tinker with these safety aids requires that you dive deep into a plethora of confusing touchscreen menus. Alternatives mostly offer shortcuts to do this quickly and easily, without having to take your eyes off the road – it’s a pity Toyota doesn’t.
If you can live with that, though, you’ll find plenty more to recommend the C-HR. It’s very comfortable to drive, and much more spacious than the car it replaces. There’s also the prospect of very low running costs – both self-charging hybrid engine options are really economical, while the plug-in hybrid makes a very cost-effective company car.
