2022 Isuzu MU-X earns five-star ANCAP safety rating

The new Isuzu MU-X seven-seat off-roader has earned top marks in crash testing from ANCAP.

The MU-X follows in the footsteps of the closely-related D-Max ute with its five-star rating, and is the first ute-based SUV to score top marks in testing under the latest ANCAP criteria.

Part of the MU-X rating is carried over from the D-Max ute, but the family four-wheel drive was subjected to its own frontal offset test.

Its five-star rating is based on an adult occupant protection score of 87 per cent, a child occupant protection score of 85 per cent, a safety assist score of 84 per cent, and a vulnerable road user protection score of 69 per cent.

Rivals also have five-star ratings, but they’re based on older testing criteria – the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Ford Everest were tested in 2015, the Toyota Fortuner was crashed alongside the HiLux in 2019.

The related D-Max ute’s rating was based on an adult occupant protection score of 83 per cent, a child occupant protection score of 89 per cent and a safety assist score of 81 per cent. Vulnerable road user protection testing yielded a score of 69 per cent.

The whole MU-X range will come with a full gamut of active safety features atop eight airbags, including:

• Autonomous emergency braking with turn assist (stops you turning into an oncoming car)
• Post-collision braking, which stops the car after a rear-end accident
• Forward collision warning
• Wrong-pedal braking, which stops if it thinks you’ve hit the accelerator instead of the brake
• Adaptive cruise with stop/go
• Traffic sign recognition
• Lane-departure warning
• Lane-keep assist
• Driver attention monitoring
• Rear cross-traffic alert
• Trailer sway control
• Reversing camera and rear parking sensors

MORE: Everything Isuzu MU-X