Two popular medium SUVs, the electric Polestar 4 and the new Subaru Forester, have received 5-star safety ratings from ANCAP, Australia and New Zealand’s trusted vehicle safety authority.
Polestar 4 Delivers Top Safety
The fully electric Polestar 4 was given full marks for driver protection in both the side impact and oblique pole crash tests. It also scored maximum points for protecting child passengers in both frontal offset and side impact crash scenarios.
“Establishing a solid product line-up, this five-star rating now sees the Polestar 2, Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 all carry the top level of safety,” said ANCAP Chief Executive Officer Carla Hoorweg.
The Polestar 4 comes with a wide range of advanced safety features. These include automatic emergency braking to help avoid crashes with other cars, pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists, along with lane support systems and speed sign recognition.
Safety scores for the Polestar 4 were:
- Adult Occupant Protection: 92 per cent
- Child Occupant Protection: 87 per cent
- Vulnerable Road User Protection: 81 per cent
- Safety Assist: 79 per cent
The Polestar 4 went on sale in Australia and New Zealand in November 2024 and is priced above $65,000. All variants come with standard safety tech, including dual frontal, side chest, side head, and centre airbags.
Subaru Forester Keeps Safety Reputation Strong
The new-generation Subaru Forester, available in both hybrid and petrol models, also received a 5-star rating. It garnered especially high marks for protecting children and vulnerable road users.
“The new-generation Subaru Forester extends the model’s impressive safety lineage, achieving five-star safety with strong performance across the board,” Ms Hoorweg said.
The Forester received full points in side impact, oblique pole, and full-width crash tests for driver safety. However, chest protection for the second-row passenger was rated as “Weak” in the full-width test.
The Forester also includes a centre airbag as standard. While this airbag helped reduce movement between front-seat occupants, its design resulted in less head protection on the passenger side during some crash tests, leading to a small score penalty.
The Forester’s safety scores were:
- Adult Occupant Protection: 83 per cent
- Child Occupant Protection: 91 per cent
- Vulnerable Road User Protection: 86 per cent
- Safety Assist: 75 per cent
The latest Forester models were launched in June 2025 and are priced between $35,000 and $65,000. All versions are equipped with key safety systems, including autonomous emergency braking, lane-keeping aids, and speed assistance technologies.
Both the Polestar 4 and Subaru Forester continue to show how modern SUVs can deliver high performance and strong safety across the board.
The full safety report for the Polestar 4 can be found here, while that for the Subaru Forester can be found here.
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