6 safest car brands in the world

Along with advances in engineering, styling, and technological developments, manufacturers are also increasing the safety of their cars. Lane departure warning, forward collision warning, blind spot detection, and stability control systems are just some of the technologies that are being adopted by many cars.

Hotcars recently compiled a list of the safest car brands in the world (as of August 2023).

1. Genesis: Safety rating: 9.8/10

Born to be the luxury division of Hyundai, Genesis prides itself on providing top-notch customer service. Additionally, Genesis is also ranked the safest in the world by Euro NCAP along with Mazda.

The entire Genesis lineup has received a five-star safety rating from the European rating program. The G70, G80, GV70, and GV80 models are among the top performers. The IIHS also awarded these four models a “Top Safety Pick+” designation for their excellent safety. The IIHS is known for conducting the most rigorous crash tests in the world.

Notable advanced safety systems of Genesis include: forward collision warning, forward and reverse automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, blind spot camera, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, lane keeping assist, lane tracing assist, lane departure warning, driver attention monitor, rearview camera, parking assist, safe exit assist, front and rear parking sensors, automatic high beam headlights.

Mazda: Safety rating: 9.8/10

The Japanese brand tops the safety list. Small car performance was mixed in the IIHS' new side-impact crash test, but the Mazda3 sedan and hatchback were the only vehicles to earn a "good" rating among 11 competitors.

Mazda's notable advanced safety systems include: blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist, forward collision warning, driver attention monitoring, front automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, stop-and-go adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic alert, front and rear parking sensors, and reverse automatic emergency braking.

Volvo: Safety rating: 9.7/10

The Swedish carmaker pioneered the three-point seat belt, which it claims has saved more than a million lives to date. Volvo was also the first carmaker to introduce the first rear-facing child car seat, back in 1964.

Time and time again, Volvo has earned top safety scores from Euro NCAP, IIHS, and NHTSA. According to iSeeCars, the Volvo XC60 is not only among the 33 safest SUVs, but also the second safest small luxury SUV.

The safest Volvo models of 2023 based on NHTSA's 5-star rating include: 2023 Volvo S60 B5, 2023 Volvo XC40 B5, 2023 Volvo XC60 B5, 2023 Volvo XC60 B6 AWD, 2023 Volvo XC90 B5 AWD/B6 AWD/Recharge T8 PHEV SUV AWD, 2023 Volvo V60 Cross Country B5 AWD.

Volvo's notable advanced safety systems include: blind spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, forward collision warning with pedestrian and cyclist detection, front automatic emergency braking, front and rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist.

Hyundai: Safety rating: 9.7/10

Hyundai's lineup includes a variety of solid, rugged sedans and SUVs. Most of its models have near-perfect safety ratings and come equipped with a suite of advanced safety features, including forward collision avoidance assist with pedestrian detection and smart cruise control with stop-and-go technology.

A total of eight models from Hyundai's 2021-2022 lineup earned the IIHS Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ designations. The Hyundai Santa Fe and Palisade are the safest midsize SUVs for 2023, according to a study by iSeeCars.

Hyundai's notable advanced safety systems include: forward collision warning, forward automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist, lane tracing assist, adaptive cruise control, pedestrian detection, driver attention monitoring, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, exit vehicle warning, perpendicular parking assist, front and rear parking sensors.

Subaru: Safety Rating: 9.7/10

While most of Subaru's advanced safety systems are fairly generic across the industry, the Japanese automaker goes a step further by offering its unique EyeSight driver-assist technology.

It uses a combination of adaptive cruise control, traffic monitoring, and lane-keeping assist to ensure a safety package that’s among the best in the world. All of the new safety tech on the 2023 Subaru Outback perfectly demonstrates why it’s one of the few midsize cars to excel in side-impact testing. Other top-scoring models include the Crosstrek and Forester, while the WRX is a regular presence.

Subaru's notable advanced safety systems include: blind spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, forward collision warning, forward automatic emergency braking, driver attention monitoring, pedestrian detection, lane departure warning, reverse automatic emergency braking, evasive steering assist, lane keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, lane centering assist.

Ford: Safety rating: 9.7/10

According to ratings from IIHS and NHTSA, the Ford Mustang Mach-E is one of the safest electric SUVs of 2023.

The Ford Escape is also one of the safest small SUVs on the market for those who aren’t ready to go electric. The Blue Oval has a history of pickup trucks, so it makes sense to include a host of crash prevention and crash protection features. As a result, the 2015-2019 F-150 models all earned a 5-star overall safety rating from the NHTSA.

Ford's notable advanced safety systems include: forward collision warning, front automatic emergency braking, reverse automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist, driver attention monitoring, pedestrian detection, front parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, lane centering assist, evasive steering assist, and parking assist.