How Do Mazda’s Vehicle Safety Ratings Compare to Competitors?

When you are looking to buy or lease a new vehicle, safety ratings are one of the most significant — and consequential — points to compare. Even the best-rated vehicles with the most defensive drivers behind the wheel can still end up in accidents, which is why having systems in place to protect the people inside your vehicle matters so much.

Mazda is an industry leader in vehicle safety ratings, with every vehicle in its lineup earning top marks from both of the major safety rating systems. Let’s explore what this means in terms of real-world application and why investing in a Mazda car or SUV is such a great choice from a safety perspective.

What Are Vehicle Safety Ratings?

Each year in the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which is part of the U.S. government’s Department of Transportation, as well as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a non-profit organization, independently conduct rigorous tests to provide a comprehensive and detailed safety rating for every new vehicle on the road.

These two vehicle safety rating systems test a vehicle’s crashworthiness in different ways. NHTSA focuses on the type of vehicle impact (i.e., front, rear, side, and rollover) and provides each model with a star rating, with five stars as the highest rating in each category as well as overall. According to NHTSA, a five-star overall rated vehicle means that the “overall injury risk for this vehicle is much less than average.”

IIHS, on the other hand, looks at both crashworthiness and safety-related features, which it calls crash avoidance and mitigation technologies. These options come with standard and add-on packages and include pedestrian warning alerts, cameras and sensors, and automatic braking systems. Therefore, its Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ reflect not only a vehicle that offers safety in the event of a crash but also one that is significantly less likely to be involved in a crash, thanks to the systems protecting it.

Mazda’s Commitment to Vehicle Safety

Mazda has a deep commitment to vehicle safety and has consequently dedicated a lot of time and invested a lot of money into developing safety technology for all its vehicles. This includes both active safety technology, which is designed to prevent and mitigate the severity of collisions, as well as passive safety features embedded into the engineering and design of Mazda vehicles.

Key Safety Features in Mazda Vehicles

Mazda’s commitment to safety is founded on innovation in terms of both technology and engineering. As such, its technological safety features, known collectively as i-Avtivsense®, work in harmony with each vehicle’s design to deliver effective, modern safety while driving. Specifically, Mazda designs and equips each of its models with milliwave radar and cameras to help keep drivers aware of all the edges and curves along their vehicles. In practice, this looks like visual and auditory early warning detection systems as well as automatic braking capabilities.

Mazda is also committed to the concept of Jinba Ittai, or the oneness between driver and vehicle, which drives its design philosophy inside and out. This includes practical choices such as the angle and cushioning of seats and placement of mirrors in a way that allows each driver to feel connected to their car or SUV. The overall purpose is to help drivers anticipate danger and avoid it.

How Mazda Stacks Up Against Others

Mazda has the reputation of being one of the most consistently safe vehicle manufacturers operating today. This reputation is supported by the many awards, accolades, and recognitions that Mazda has received for its vehicles across all classes. For model year 2025, for example, this included IIHS Top Safety Pick+ designations for the following vehicles:

• Mazda3 Hatchback

• Mazda3 Sedan

• CX-30

• CX-50 Hybrid

• CX-50

• CX-70

• CX-70 PHEV

• CX-90

• CX-90 PHEV

Each of these vehicles also received overall five-star crash test ratings from NHTSA, supporting not only the incredible safety accomplishments of the Mazda line but also the breadth of Mazda’s ability to deliver such peace of mind. The research on Mazda is clear: Regardless of your preference, either for a small, sporty hatchback (Mazda3) or a three-row family SUV (CX-90), Mazda offers it with the best safety ratings in the industry.

Ready to learn more about Mazda’s safety and test drive these top-rated vehicles yourself? Stop by or contact DePaula Mazda in Albany, NY, to see each of our top safety rated vehicles in action.

Stop by Dealership to See the Safety Features

FAQs

Q: How are vehicle safety ratings determined?

A: Both the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the non-profit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) test and rate vehicles based on their crashworthiness and other safety features. While similarly rigorous, these rating systems are different and should be considered complementary to one another. To learn more about the tests and ratings systems, visit each organization’s webpage.

Q: How often are vehicle safety ratings updated or reassessed?

A: Each year, NHTSA announces which vehicles in the upcoming model year will go through their rigorous safety tests. Once vehicle model years receive their NHTSA rating, it is permanent; however, the next year, with the next model, the tests are conducted again.

IIHS conducts tests year-round on current model years; however, time and budget constraints prevent them from testing every vehicle model every year. Instead, they assess how much each vehicle has changed in terms of both design and technology from the prior year model and use that assessment to determine when to perform crash tests again.

Q: How do safety ratings for Mazda SUVs compare to its sedans?

A: Over the years, all of Mazda’s SUV and sedan models have received top five-star safety marks from NHTSA as well as Top Safety Pick+ designations from IIHS. This is because Mazda carefully applies all of its innovations in engineering and technology equally across its fleet. Whether you want a compact Mazda3 or the family-sized CX-70, you have access to all the top i-Activsense® safety features.

Q: How do vehicle safety ratings impact my car insurance premiums?

A: Although the safety ratings themselves do not directly affect car insurance premiums, the features that lead to those safety ratings absolutely do. Specifically, many insurance companies offer discounts — sometimes up to 20% — for drivers with vehicles that feature top safety technology such as collision warning and automatic braking systems, blind spot monitoring, and lane keeping assistance.