Hyundai’s Elexio SUV has scored an average 84 per cent in its ANCAP safety rating, falling down in its safety for pedestrians.
It beat 11 of the medium-sized 20 battery electric SUVs currently rated by ANCAP, all of which have five-star ratings,
That list includes the Ionic 5, which scored slightly higher on child safety and road assist, but much lower on vulnerable road user protection.
The Elexio received an 88 per cent rating for adult protection, scoring well if the car has a head on crash but losing points for not automatically calling emergency services in the event of a crash.
It scored 86 per cent for child safety – ANCAP frowned on it not having child presence detection technology – and 85 per cent for safety assist, dragged down by poorer performance of lane-keeping assistant technology.
The lowest score was for pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, where the 77 per cent score reflected the dangers for other road users from SUVs.
While it offered “adequate” head protection for adults, that fell to “weak” and “poor” on the sides of the bonnet.
The risk of fatalities for pedestrians and cyclists is 1.7 times higher for other SUVs than for sedans and hatches, according to this study in 2022.
Children are eight times more likely to die when struck by a SUV compared to children struck by a passenger car.
The dangers posed by upsizing cars has been raised by The Driven in the past.
Of the 20 medium-sized battery SUVs rated by ANCAP, only six scored higher that 80 per cent with Tesla’s Model Y the highest at 86 per cent.
Two cars performed so badly in tests around road user safety their ratings were in the 60s — the Ionic 5 and the Genesis GV70.
Scoring lower on safety of other road users did not prevent any of these vehicles gaining a five star ratings, however.
ANCAP said the car “delivered strong protection for other road users, recording solid performance across autonomous emergency braking scenarios involving other vehicles, including motorcycles.”
“Consumers are expecting increasingly comprehensive safety performance from new vehicles in the market regardless of powertrain,” ANCAP CEO Carla Hoorweg said in a statement.
“These five-star results demonstrate solid occupant protection combined with advanced crash avoidance technology, providing confidence for families and fleet buyers alike.”
The Elexio is one of Hyundai’s China-made models, with a 160kW / 310Nm battery and a range that the manufacturer says is up to 546km.
Earlier this month, the South Korean carmaker landed $60 million from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) to provide cheaper finance for electric vehicles priced below the luxury car tax threshold.
The deal would see buyers save 0.5-1 per cent on their car loan interest rate.
Hyundai offers a range of EVs in the Australian market, including the Ioniq 5, the Ioniq 6, the Ioniq 9, the Inster, the Kona, and the soon to be released Elexio. Its sister company Kia sells the Niro, the EV3, the EV5, the EV6, the EV9, and the newly released EV4.
Rachel Williamson is a science and business journalist, who focuses on climate change-related health and environmental issues.