Audi prides itself on the superiority of its headlight technology. While its laser headlights are just starting to reach the United States, the LED lamps that are already available have helped boost the A3 sedan to the highest safety rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The A3 was previously rated as a Top Safety Pick on the strength of its “good” rating in five IIHS crash tests, and the “advanced” or “superior” grades it earned for its crash prevention systems. All it needed was an “acceptable” grade in the headlights category to earn the highest Top Safety Pick + rating, and the introduction of available LED units saw to that.
Included as standard equipment in the Prestige trim (along with automatic high-beam assist), and optional on the Premium Plus model, the LED headlights made the grade. However the Institute points out that the HID headlights that come standard on most of the A3’s trim levels “provide inadequate lighting on the straightaway and all four curves that are part of the IIHS evaluation.”
So if you want the safest vehicle possible and are looking at the A3, better spring for the LEDs.
The A3 isn’t the only Audi to earn top marks from the IIHS, though. The A6 and Q7 both made the grade for Top Safety Pick, and both the A4 and Q5 earned Top Safety Pick + recognition for 2017. Mercedes-Benz, by comparison, got only one of its models (C-Class and GLE) in each category. The BMW X1 was rated as a Top Safety Pick, while the 2 Series and 3 Series were subsequently promoted to the Plus category.
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