2019 Audi Q3, A7 excel in IIHS crash tests

The completely redesigned 2019 Audi Q3 and 2019 Audi A7 have been crash tested by the IIHS, and both of them performed well. The Audi Q3 came away with the highest Top Safety Pick + rating, and the A7 scored the second-highest rating of Top Safety Pick.

For the Audi Q3, not only is the Top Safety Pick + rating impressive, but it also marks a significant improvement over the previous generation, which didn’t receive any Top Safety Pick rating. The old one was hampered by headlights with the lowest “Poor” rating, a lack of any kind of forward collision warning or prevention systems, and having not been tested for passenger-side overlap crash protection. The new model gets the highest “Good” rating in all crash tests, has standard forward collision prevention with the highest rating and will stop the car at speeds up to 25 mph, and headlights that are rated “Good” in all but the base trim. The base trim’s lights are rated “Poor.” As an extra bonus, the IIHS gave the Q3 a “Good +” rating for LATCH anchor access for child seats. At this size and price class, only the Volvo XC40 has the Top Safety Pick + rating, while the BMW X2 and Lexus UX just have the regular Top Safety Pick rating.

The A7 managed to get top “Good” ratings in all crash tests. It also has standard forward collision prevention tech that can stop the car at speeds up to 25 mph, giving it top marks in that category. Holding it back from the full Top Safety Pick + rating are headlights that are “Acceptable” at best; those lights are included on the mid-level Premium Plus trim. The base Premium trim’s lights are rated “Marginal,” and the top Prestige trim’s lights are rated “Poor.” Child seat LATCH anchor access is rated “Good.” Among mid-size to large luxury sedans, the Volvo S90 ties the A7’s Top Safety Pick rating, and quite a few other sedans have the higher Top Safety Pick + rating. Among those high-rated sedans are the Lincoln Continental, Audi A6, BMW 5 Series, every Genesis sedan and the Mercedes-Benz E-Class.