In a landmark report released yesterday, Australia’s leading vehicle safety authority has pulled back the curtain on how our most popular workhorses perform when things go pear-shaped on the road. The comprehensive assessment examined fifteen of Australia’s best-selling utes and light commercial vehicles, revealing stark differences in occupant protection that might have tradies and fleet managers alike reconsidering their next purchase.
The Safety Scorecard
The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) conducted its most extensive testing program of light commercial vehicles to date, subjecting popular models to a battery of crash scenarios designed to replicate real-world accidents. What makes this round of testing particularly significant is the inclusion of updated protocols that better represent the increasing size and weight of modern utes.
“The landscape of Australian roads has changed dramatically,” explains ANCAP Chief Executive Officer Sarah Mitchell. “Utes are no longer just workhorses—they’re family vehicles, too. With more utes and light trucks sharing our roads than ever before, understanding how these vehicles perform in crashes isn’t just about occupant safety; it’s about the safety of all road users.”
The testing regimen included frontal offset crashes, side impact tests, pedestrian protection assessments, and for the first time, a specific compatibility test examining how these larger vehicles interact with smaller passenger cars during collisions.
Winners and Losers
The results paint a complex picture of Australia’s ute market. Of the fifteen vehicles tested, only six achieved the coveted five-star safety rating under the stringent 2025 protocols. Four vehicles received four stars, three earned three stars, and two models—both ageing platforms with minimal recent structural updates—limped away with concerning two-star ratings.
Leading the pack was the newest iteration of the Isuzu D-Max, which scored exceptionally well across all test categories. “The D-Max has set a new benchmark for passive and active safety in the segment,” notes Mitchell. “Its performance in the frontal offset test was particularly impressive, with minimal cabin intrusion and excellent protection for both driver and passenger.”
Hot on its heels was the Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux, and Mazda BT-50, all securing five-star ratings with strong performances. The recently refreshed Mitsubishi Triton also joined the five-star club, showing marked improvement over its predecessor.
However, not all news was positive. Two vehicles that have enjoyed strong sales despite minimal updates in recent years—the GWM Ute and the LDV T60—performed poorly in several key areas. Both vehicles showed concerning levels of cabin intrusion during frontal impact tests, and their active safety systems were rated as “basic” compared to class leaders.
“The results clearly demonstrate the safety benefit of choosing more recent designs,” says Mitchell. “Vehicles developed or substantially updated in the past three years generally offer significantly better protection than those based on older platforms.”
The Technical Picture
Diving deeper into the technical aspects, ANCAP’s testing revealed several fascinating insights into ute crash dynamics.
The frontal offset test, which simulates a vehicle striking a stationary object or oncoming vehicle with 40% overlap at 64 km/h, proved particularly challenging for several models. In this test, forces are concentrated on a smaller area of the vehicle’s structure, making it a stringent assessment of structural integrity.
“We’re seeing a clear division between vehicles designed with a modern safety cell concept and those using older architectural approaches,” explains Dr. Jason Wong, ANCAP’s Technical Director. “Modern utes are increasingly adopting passenger car safety philosophies, with crumple zones designed to absorb energy while maintaining cabin integrity.”
The testing also examined the effectiveness of autonomous emergency braking systems, with particular attention to scenarios involving pedestrians and cyclists. This area showed significant variation between models, with the top performers capable of detecting and avoiding vulnerable road users in 85% of test scenarios, while the poorest performers managed only 40%.
Another key differentiator was far-side impact protection—safety measures designed to protect occupants from being thrown toward the opposite side of the vehicle during a side impact. The better-performing vehicles featured centre airbags or other countermeasures specifically designed to mitigate this risk.
The Ageing Fleet Problem
The testing results highlight a growing concern among safety experts—Australia’s ageing commercial vehicle fleet. Unlike family cars, which typically see generational updates every 5-6 years, commercial vehicles often soldier on with the same basic structure for a decade or more, receiving only cosmetic refreshes.
“Some of the poorer performing vehicles are based on architectures developed more than a decade ago,” notes Wong. “While they may have received updates to their powertrains, infotainment systems, or styling, their fundamental crash structures remain largely unchanged from an era when safety standards were considerably lower.”
This creates a challenging situation for consumers, particularly in regional areas where vehicle choices may be limited by dealer networks and where these vehicles often see the hardest use.
“We’re particularly concerned about the over-representation of older commercial vehicles in rural crash statistics,” says Mitchell. “The data clearly shows that regional areas, where these vehicles are most common, continue to experience disproportionately high fatality rates in crashes involving utes and light trucks.”
The Great Ute Safety Divide
Perhaps the most concerning finding from the testing program was the growing safety divide between the top and bottom performers—a gap that appears to be widening rather than narrowing.
While the best performers now offer safety features that would have seemed futuristic just five years ago—including adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go functionality, junction assist, rear cross-traffic alert with braking, and sophisticated lane support systems—the poorer performers often lack even basic features like blind-spot monitoring.
This divergence creates what safety experts call a “two-tier market,” where budget-conscious buyers may be unknowingly sacrificing safety for affordability.
“The price difference between a two-star and five-star ute can be as little as $5,000 in some cases,” notes Mitchell. “When you consider that difference over a typical five-year ownership period, you’re effectively valuing your safety—and potentially your life—at just $20 per week.”
The Tradie’s Dilemma
For Australia’s army of tradies, who often view their utes as both workplace and transport, the findings present something of a dilemma.
“I need something that can cop a bit of punishment,” says Brisbane carpenter Mark Lawson, who’s been driving utes for over twenty years. “But seeing these crash results does make you think twice about what you’re driving your kids around in on the weekend.”
This dual-purpose use of utes is increasingly common in Australia, where the top-selling vehicles are no longer passenger cars but dual-cab utes that serve as both work vehicles and family transport.
“We’re seeing more child seats in the back of utes than ever before,” confirms Mitchell. “That’s why we’ve updated our testing to include specific assessments of child occupant protection in these vehicles.”
The results in this area were mixed. While most newer models performed adequately, several vehicles received poor marks for ease of installing child restraints and for the protection offered to child occupants in impact tests.
Fleet Buyers: The Market Movers
Fleet buyers, who account for approximately 40% of new ute sales in Australia, are increasingly using ANCAP ratings as a key purchasing criterion. Many corporate and government fleets now mandate five-star ratings for their vehicles, creating significant market pressure for manufacturers.
“We’re already seeing the effects of this latest round of testing on fleet purchasing decisions,” says Mitchell. “Several major fleet operators have contacted us directly to discuss transitioning away from the poorer-performing models.”
This fleet pressure has historically been one of the most effective catalysts for safety improvements, with manufacturers often fast-tracking safety updates to maintain eligibility for large fleet contracts.
“The fleet market is critically important in Australia,” confirms automotive industry analyst David Porter. “Losing major fleet contracts can make the difference between a model’s success or failure in our market, which gives fleet managers considerable influence over vehicle specifications.”
The Broader Impact
Beyond the direct implications for vehicle occupants, the testing also examined how these increasingly large vehicles interact with other road users.
“Utes and light trucks have been growing in size with each generation,” explains Wong. “A modern dual-cab ute is typically 15-20% heavier and significantly taller than models from just ten years ago. This has implications not just for their own crash performance, but for what happens when they collide with smaller vehicles.”
To address this concern, ANCAP introduced a new “compatibility” assessment, which examines how a vehicle’s structure interacts with smaller vehicles during collisions. This assessment evaluates whether a ute’s front-end structure engages properly with the crash structures of smaller cars, or whether it rides over them, potentially causing more severe injuries.
The results in this area were concerning, with only the newest designs showing good compatibility with smaller vehicles. Several popular models were found to have front-end structures that could override the crash protection systems of smaller cars.
“This is particularly important as our vehicle fleet diversifies,” notes Mitchell. “With the increasing popularity of small SUVs and electric vehicles sharing the roads with these larger utes, understanding how they interact in crashes becomes crucial for overall road safety.”
What’s Next for Ute Safety?
Looking ahead, ANCAP has announced plans to further tighten its testing protocols for commercial vehicles, bringing them into closer alignment with passenger car standards.
“Historically, commercial vehicles have been subject to less stringent safety expectations,” explains Mitchell. “But as these vehicles increasingly serve dual purposes, that distinction is no longer appropriate.”
Future testing will place greater emphasis on active safety systems, particularly those designed to prevent the types of crashes most common in commercial vehicles—including run-off-road incidents and rear-end collisions, both of which occur more frequently in rural areas where utes are prevalent.
Additionally, ANCAP is working with regulators to address the growing size disparity on Australian roads, potentially introducing specific requirements for front-end structures that better protect other road users.
“We’re at an interesting crossroads in vehicle safety,” concludes Mitchell. “The technology exists to make all vehicles—including utes and light trucks—dramatically safer than they were even five years ago. The challenge now is ensuring that these technologies are standardised across all models, not just the premium offerings.”
The Consumer’s Choice
For consumers in the market for a new ute, the message from safety experts is clear: prioritise recent designs with comprehensive safety packages, even if it means spending slightly more upfront.
“The difference between a poorly rated ute and a five-star performer could literally be life or death in a serious crash,” emphasizes Mitchell. “We encourage all buyers to check the ANCAP rating before purchase and to prioritise safety features over creature comforts if budget constraints exist.”
The full ratings for all tested vehicles are available on the ANCAP website, with detailed breakdowns of performance across all test categories. Additionally, the organisation has produced a series of crash test videos that graphically demonstrate the differences between the best and worst performers.
“Seeing these crashes in slow motion tells a story that statistics can’t,” says Mitchell. “When you watch how a well-designed safety cell maintains its integrity while a poorly designed one collapses, the choice becomes very clear.”
As Australia’s roads continue to fill with increasingly diverse vehicle types, understanding these safety differences becomes more important than ever—not just for ute buyers, but for everyone sharing our roads.
With tradies, families, and fleet managers all digesting these latest findings, manufacturers of the poorer-performing models will undoubtedly be feeling the pressure to up their game. In Australia’s competitive ute market, safety may just be becoming the new battleground for market share.