2023 Range Rovers receive five-star ANCAP safety rating

The ​​Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) has rated the new-generation L460-series Range Rover and related L461-series Range Rover Sport the full five-star safety score under the 2022 testing criteria.

It applies to all petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) variants of both luxury offroaders. They achieved full points for adult and child occupant protection in the side impact test, and the driver in the pole test.

Despite not including a centre airbag to prevent the driver and front passenger from colliding in the event of a crash, ANCAP explains, “owing to the size and design of the cabin, performance in far side impact tests was still respectable”.

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It’s worth noting that the automotive safety body used a standard Range Rover example for most of its tests, while the frontal offset and pole tests were conducted with a Range Rover Sport PHEV to confirm the results.

The sleeker Rover Sport scored one per cent better in the adult occupant protection category (84 per cent), but three per cent less for vulnerable road user protection (69 per cent) compared to its boxier SUV sibling.

Both models have the same 86 per cent child occupant protection and 84 per cent safety assist ratings.

Their autonomous emergency braking (AEB) active safety assist systems scored well for detecting and avoiding vehicles and pedestrians in front; however, reverse AEB for pedestrians is not offered.

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The road ahead

ANCAP is set to implement a more stringent 2023 safety criteria into the new year, including a focus on floodwater testing, assessing systems that detect when a child has been left in the vehicle, and new car-to-motorcycle safety assist tests.

The Range Rover currently starts from $226,806 before on-road costs and the Rover Sport is priced from $139,160 before on-roads.