The Hyundai Tucson, Mazda MX-5 and Vauxhall Viva have all performed well in the latest round of Euro NCAP safety testing. The Tucson compact SUV achieved five stars, thanks to high scores in all areas of assessment. Although AEB technology is offered as option on the Tucson, it was not included in the rating as the uptake is not expected to be high enough.

The Vauxhall Viva city car was awarded four stars. The body said there were still a couple of issues - in an offset test, the head bottomed out the airbag and in the side pole impact the chest was protected poorly. Chest protection offered to the rear small female passenger dummy in the latest full-width rigid barrier test was also weak while the driver slipped under the seatbelt, resulting in elevated risk at knee and femur injuries.

The Mazda MX-5 also achieved a four star rating, combining good all-round performance in crash tests with exceptional pedestrian protection thanks to the deployable bonnet fitted as standard. However, the absence of AEB disappointed NCAP, as the testing body said many similarly-priced cars in other segments offer this safety equipment at least as option.