TOP safety ratings have been handed out by Euro NCAP to five new models including the Alfa Romeo Tonale and the Kia Sportage.

The Mercedes-Benz T-Class MPV and the German brand's Citan Tourer also received five star awards as did the all-electric Cupra Born.

Four star ratings went to the Toyota Aygo X supermini crossover and BMW's electric i4 coupe.

The Tonale, the first all-new model from Alfa Romeo since the Stelvio in 2016, met all the Euro NCAP requirements for a five star rating, despite lacking centre airbags.

The safety organisation said that overall the Tonale performs well in car to car and car to vulnerable road user crash avoidance tests and it offers an attention assist system that can detect driver drowsiness.

The fully-revamped Kia Sportage, which shares a platform with the five-star Hyundai Tucson which was rated by Euor NCAP last year, is equally well equipped and scored very similarly in safety tests, earning five stars as well.

The same can be said of the Cupra Born, VW group's sportier alternative to the ID.3.

In the van-based MPV segment, the Mercedes-Benz Citan Tourer and its posher version, the T-Class, which both share the same platform as the Renault Kangoo, were also evaluated with Euro NCAP saying the two are better equipped than their French counterpart with a new centre airbag for additional far-side impact protection and high performing active safety features.

Of the Toyota Aygo X, the latest arrival in the highly competitive supermini segment, Euro NCAP said the small cross-over city car does well overall but forgoes some more advanced safety systems, resulting in a 4-star rating.

Finally, BMW's battery electric compact executive car i4 shows that luxury does not always mean better safety performance. Equipped with a similar sensor set to the BMW 3 Series tested in 2019, the gran sedan missed out on some critical crash avoidance points which took its overall rating down to four stars.