Safety first! 2023 Toyota Corolla Cross, Nissan X-Trail, Range Rover and Range Rover Sport squeak in five-star ANCAP scores ahead of tougher rules

Four new models have been awarded the maximum five-star safety score from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP), just months before tougher testing criteria is introduced in 2023.

Of the four cars, the new-generation Nissan X-Trial is the standout for safety, notching three out of four scores above 90 per cent.

While the adult and child occupant protection tests (91 per cent and 90 per cent respectively) are particularly high, the 97 per cent score for the safety assist category is equal second-best in all ANCAP’s testing.

Read More About Nissan X-TRAIL

How safe are the 2023 BYD Atto 3 and Volvo C40 electric cars? Two Chinese-built EVs score highly, but there's a catch with one... Will your car be safe enough? More stringent testing criteria for five-star crash ratings coming in 2023 Another Chinese car scores top marks for safety

The 2023 X-Trail falls just shy of the Tesla Model Y that notched 98 per cent in the safety assist test, while also equalling its new-gen Qashqai sibling.

However, ANCAP awarded the X-Trail with an average 74 per cent for the vulnerable road user protection test.

The five-star safety rating applies to all variants of the 2023 X-Trail range, including the e-Power hybrids that are due to land next year.

Toyota’s new Corolla Cross also continues the brand’s five-star ANCAP streak, with respectable results across the board.

For adult and child occupant protection, ANCAP awarded the Corolla Cross 85 and 88 per cent respectively, while the vulnerable road user protection test yielded an 87 per cent score – the highest scoring model in this category in the 2020-2022 testing criteria according to ANCAP.

Safety assist was the lowest score for the Corolla Cross (83 per cent), let down by the Speed Assistance Systems test in which it scored 1.15 points out of a possible three.

Finally, Land Rover’s two latest models – the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport – were also tested, highlighting the differences in safety of both mechanically similar models.

The Ranger Rover Sport emerged with a higher score in the adult occupant protection test (85 per cent compared to 84 per cent), but the Range Rover was deemed safer for pedestrians with a higher vulnerable road user protection score (72 per cent compared with 69 per cent).

As for the child occupant protection and safety assist tests, both cars scored identically with 86 per cent form the former and 84 per cent for the latter.

These four models will be some of the last to be tested using ANCAP’s 2022 standards, as next year the organisation will introduce two new examinations – a submergence test and a rear-seat occupant notification test.