Euro NCAP today confirmed that the new Toyota Auris has been awarded a maximum five-star rating for adult occupant protection in its safety crash test evaluation. Auris scored 100% on side impact and pole crash tests to gain a total adult safety score of 35, the highest in the class.

Auris also joins the class leaders in small family cars with four-stars for child occupant protection and three-stars in the relatively new assessment for pedestrian safety.

Auris is the fifth Toyota to achieve a maximum five-star rating in Euro NCAP, making the Toyota model range among the safest cars in Europe. The Toyota Auris will be introduced onto the European Market from February 2007.

Andrea Formica, Senior Vice-President, Sales, Marketing & After Sales, TME said: " We have always sought to ensure that every new Toyota enjoys the highest levels of safety. Auris is the latest Toyota model to live up to this ambition."

The new Auris is built around a strong, rigid body structure with excellent passive safety features. It is available with up to nine airbags, including a driver’s knee airbag - as tested by Euro NCAP. This, combined with an innovative collapsible steering column, helped the car achieve its 5-star result.

Euro NCAP noted ‘no rearward displacement’ of the steering column in frontal impact, no chest contact with the steering wheel and noted ‘the knee airbag protected the driver's knees and femurs in the frontal test’.

The excellent standard passive safety package also helped Auris achieve top results for child (37 points) and pedestrian protection (21 points).

As with all Toyota core models, Auris has standard Isofix child seat anchorages on the outer rear seats. Toptether anchorages are available for child seats and the front passenger airbag can be disabled to allow a rearward facing child restraint to be used.

With three stars (21 points) out of a maximum four-star rating for pedestrian protection, Auris is in the top of its class in this relatively new assessment. Toyota now has two models with three stars for pedestrian protection and five models with maximum five star ratings for adult occupants.

“We are very confident that Auris will impress customers because of its outstanding safety performance combined with the distinctive design and engaging driving dynamics,” says Andrea Formica.