VIDEO: 2016 Audi A6 Small Overlap Crash Test

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has named the 2016 model-year Audi A6 a Top Safety Pick+ award winner when the sedan is equipped with the available Driver Assistance package.

The Top Safety Pick+ distinction applies to such Audi A6 cars produced after January of this year. Top Safety Pick+ is the highest overall rating available from IIHS.

Audi modified the 2016 model to improve small overlap protection. The large luxury vehicle had previously drawn “good” ratings in IIHS’s other crashworthiness tests and an “advanced” rating for the optional front crash prevention system.

In the sedan’s recent small overlap test, the driver’s space was maintained well, with maximum intrusion of 4 inches at the footrest, IIHS said. The dummy’s movement was controlled well. The head hit the front air bag and stayed there until the rebound, and the side curtain air bag deployed with enough coverage to protect the head from contact with the side structure and outside objects.

Measures taken from the dummy indicated a low risk of any significant injuries in a crash of this severity, IIHS added.

Introduced in 2012, the small overlap test replicates what happens when the front corner of a vehicle collides with another vehicle or an object such as a tree or a utility pole. Vehicles that earn a “good” or “acceptable” rating for small overlap protection and “good” ratings in the moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint evaluations qualify for Top Safety Pick.

To qualify for Top Safety Pick+, vehicles must also have an available front crash prevention system that earns an “advanced” or “superior” rating.