The full-size, seven-seat Audi Q7 is the latest Audi SUV model to be awarded with the Top Safety Pick+ rating by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the USA’s foremost organization dedicated to evaluating vehicles’ safety features and standards.
Besides the Q7, the IIHS had also given the Audi Q3, Q5 and Q8 SUVs its highest safety ratings, certifying Audi as an auto industry leader in safety-related technologies.
One of the Q7’s features cited by the IIHS as key to the model having received top safety marks is its lighting system. Audi leads in advanced lighting technology, and the Q7 offers the brand’s latest HD Matrix LED headlights.
Lighting technology and design have been success factors for Audi, and has allowed it to continue setting new benchmarks in the automotive industry. The digitization of lighting enabled Audi to offer completely new functions that significantly increase safety.
In the Q7, the IIHS recognized the model’s intelligent headlight adjustments that, among other benefits, could amply enhance visibility in any condition while also eliminating glare for oncoming drivers. Other Audi SUV models also come equipped with the brand’s proprietary HD Matrix LED systems.
One of the factors required for a vehicle to earn IIHS’s latest Top Safety Pick+ rating is that its headlights must receive the highest scores during evaluations. Other qualifications include equally excellent marks in front and side crash testing, crash prevention, and vehicle-to-pedestrian collision in both daytime and nighttime.
Stricter safety evaluations
The IIHS strengthened its safety rating requirements earlier this year, demanding better side crash protection and improved pedestrian crash prevention systems. It also eliminated subpar headlights from the field of qualifying vehicles.
As a result of the tougher criteria, there were less Top Safety Picks this year as the organization challenged automakers to build on the safety gains that have already been achieved. The vehicles that received the highest ratings are therefore true standouts in both crashworthiness and crash prevention.
Audi’s SUV model lineup in the Philippines, composed of the all-rounder Q3, midsize Q5, full-size Q7 and the dynamic Q8, have all received the Top Safety Pick+ award. Also recognized by the IIHS with the highest ratings are the 100% electric Audi Q8 e-tron 55 SUV, Q8 e-tron 50 SUV and Q8 e-tron Sportback.