Euro NCAP 2026 safety tests favour physical buttons over touchscreens

So this is a button test?

Pretty much, yes. Euro NCAP is — quite rightly, in CompleteCar’s view — concerned that the overload of screen and touch-sensitive controls is becoming an actual danger and causing distraction while driving. The independent car safety organisation is saying that from now on cars which have separate physical controls for common functions will score better than those that rely almost totally on their screens.

So what were the latest batch of results?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, there’s a distinct regional division in the button test, with European brands doing better and Chinese brands (with one exception) doing much worse. The European models tested so far in 2026 that did well on Euro NCAP’s new button test were the BMW iX3, which scored 100 per cent for driving controls, with the Cupra Raval scoring 80 per cent.

Read our Cupra Raval review.

In contrast, the Zeekr 7GT and Aion UT each scored 20 per cent, with the Leapmotor B05 lagging with a score of zero. The only Chinese model that performed well in the test was the new Geely E2, the Chinese car maker’s compact electric hatchback, which matched the Raval’s 80 per cent score.

What did Euro NCAP make of the results?

Officially, Euro NCAP said: “This seemingly small but significant difference highlights how Euro NCAP’s latest testing protocols, introduced for 2026, encourage the use of well-sited, easily operated physical buttons and switches for basic functions. This is partly in response to consumer criticism of too many day-to-day driving controls being embedded within touchscreen menus, which can be needlessly fiddly, and which research has shown has a higher distraction potential for a driver compared to physical buttons.”

Has Euro NCAP been doing other, regular crash tests?

Yes, it has, and in the latest round of results the new Audi Q7 scored five stars, as did the big Xpeng G9 electric MPV (although that got criticised for being too screen-focused) and the compact Kia EV2. The new BYD Shark pickup also scored an impressive — especially for a commercial vehicle — five stars, but the Mazda 2 Hybrid came up one short, sharing a four-star rating with the mechanically identical Toyota Yaris.

Dr Aled Williams, Programme Director at Euro NCAP, said of the results and the new button test: “Euro NCAP is continually monitoring market trends, and the move toward placing as many driving controls within a car’s touchscreen system is one that has concerned us just as much as it has annoyed consumers. It is clear in these results that the Xpeng adheres to the mantra that everything must be included in the touch screen, despite overwhelmingly negative feedback by European car buyers. We applaud Audi and Kia for taking a more common-sense approach. Our latest protocols reward the intelligent use of physical buttons and controls, as this can reduce driver distraction, and both Audi’s new Q7 and Kia’s EV2 do an excellent job of keeping safety simple. Other manufacturers, including Xpeng, would do well to follow this strategy.”