The 20 Least Safe Cars of 2015

Photo by AudiAG

3. Audi A4

The Audi A4 earned a “poor” rating in the small overlap front test, earning it a low safety rating. Driver space was seriously compromised by intruding structure. Footwell intrusion measured as much as 28 cm, and the instrument panel intruded 28 cm. The steering column was pushed back 13 cm towards the driver. A left hip injury is likely in a crash of this severity, as indicated by dummy measurements. In the second test, the dummy’s head contacted the frontal airbag but slid off the left side as the steering column moved 18 cm to the right, leaving the head vulnerable to contact with forward structure and resulting in little airbag cushioning for the chest. The driver door opened during the crash, which shouldn’t happen because the driver could be partly or completely ejected from the vehicle.