You know just from looking at the crash test videos that the Mazda6 is a very sturdy car. It even takes the treacherous small overlap crash with apparent ease, and it’s really one of the few cars that retain their overall shape up to the A-pillar; looks like you could just walk away from a crash like this…

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) rated it a Top Safety Pick+, as it achieved maximum scores in all categories (small and moderate overlap, side, roof and head restraints / seats). It was also rated “Advanced” in the crash prevention tech category, and that’s important in order to get the plus.

The “Good” rating it received for the small overlap test is an improvement on the “Average” it got as the 2015 model year. Mazda has clearly done some work underneath with the 6, despite not changing it on the outside all that much.

Scroll down for the video.

Video