Safest small family car: Nissan Qashqai
Not only is the Qashqai topping the sales charts, it’s leading the way for passenger protection, too. When it was tested by NCAP back in 2007 it became the first car ever to score a maximum 37 from 37 points for adult occupant protection.
The Qashqai scored four out of five stars for child protection and two out of four stars for pedestrian protection – which also stacks up well against the competition.
Features such as double seatbelt pretensioners ensured that the driver’s forward movement was very limited, keeping the knees and thighs well away from the dashboard.
A spokesman for Euro NCAP said: “This is a particularly impressive result, since the Qashqai is a new vehicle in this category.”
Other top-performers in the small family car class include the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic and SEAT Leon.
