Vehicle safety
Audi invests in the development of new and improved vehicle safety features with the aim of protecting vehicle occupants and other road users. Active and passive safety technologies, including advanced lighting technologies, can make a significant contribution to reducing the risk of accidents and injuries.
Vehicle safety has been a high priority at Audi for some time
As early as 1938, engineers of DKW, one of the four founding brands of today’s AUDI AG, conducted rollover and side-impact tests with DKW models. These were among the first systematic crash tests in the history of the automobile. Active and passive vehicle safety are still clearly in focus today.
Awards from consumer protection organizations:
top scores from Euro NCAP and IIHS
Audi endeavors at all times to achieve the best possible endorsement from external consumer protection organizations in the various core markets (e.g., IIHS (USA), China NCAP, Euro NCAP). The awards received are testament to the success achieved through decades of experience, research and development: In the Euro NCAP, all Audi models tested over the past ten years – including all electric models – have received the top score of five stars. (Source: Euro NCAP | Latest Safety Ratings)
Euro NCAP (European New Car Assessment Programme) is a Europe-wide test program that assesses the safety of new cars in realistic accident scenarios. Audi continued the success series in 2025: The Audi A3, Audi Q3, Audi Q4 e-tron, Audi Q5 and Audi A6 e-tron product lines all received a five-star rating. (Source: Euro NCAP test results: Audi A3, Audi Q3, Audi Q4 e-tron, Audi Q5, Audi A6 e-tron)
Audi also excels in the United States: for the 2026 model year, the Audi A5, Audi Q5, Audi Q5 Sportback, Audi A6 Sportback e-tron, Audi Q6 e-tron, and Audi Q6 Sportback e-tron received the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) TOP SAFETY PICK+ award. With the Audi A6, a seventh Audi model has now earned the IIHS’s highest safety rating. (Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety 2026 TOP SAFETY PICKs)
Euro NCAP test results 2025
Current figures
Around
20,000
virtual accident simulations per year
More than
800
crash tests for the further development of passive safety functions
Future-proof: Audi Vehicle Safety Center since 2023
The investment in the Audi Vehicle Safety Center (AFZ) in Ingolstadt is paying off: Numerous models have been homologated here since November 2023. The AFZ is one of the key development facilities in the field of passive safety at Audi. Experienced teams of experts carry out one to two crash tests per day, five days a week.
Active contribution: Audi Accident Research Unit
In addition to the new and further development of its active and passive vehicle safety systems, AUDI AG also contributes actively to accident research with the Audi Accident Research Unit (AARU); an interdisciplinary research project in collaboration with the University Medical Center in Regensburg. The AARU is committed to better understanding the causes, circumstances and consequences of accidents in order to develop proposals and measures to enhance road safety. Audi shares these findings with authorities and public organizations and also uses them to develop new models.
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