2020 Land Rover Defender Earns Five Stars in EuroNCAP Test But Doesn't Shine

Immediately after its launch, it looked as though the Defender would have a very successful second life. Every review confirmed it was by far more capable off-road than the previous generation and one of the most capable among its modern peers as well. What more could you ask from it?

Apparently, better reliability would be the most likely answer. That, and a much less complicated design - and by design, we don't mean anything to do with its appearance, but with the way it's put together. It is way too complex and reliant on electronics to ever make a good overlanding option, which is what the old one excelled at.

Land Rover had to make a decision with the new model, and it did. The Brits could opt to please the hardcore fans of the old generation - a handful of people, on a global scale - or make a modern SUV that would appeal to hundreds of thousands of new customers. Not exactly a tough decision, to the despair of some.

Is it the best Discovery you can buy, as some people claimed? Well, considering the huge flop the Disco 5 is, that may not be such a bad thing. However, being a modern SUV also means offering high levels of safety, which is something we could only hint about the new Defender but didn't really know for sure. Until now.

The Land Rover has recently received its ratings from the EuroNCAP (European New Car Assessment Program), and even though it managed to get all five stars, its individual scores and results show there was room for improvement. Sure, the sheer size and mass of the vehicle would be on its side in case of a real-world crash, and yet you can't help but feel a bit disappointed.

The 2020 Defender scored 85% in the adult occupant section, offering good protection in all instances bar the full-width rigid barrier test and the mobile progressive deformable barrier test. In the former, the rear passenger's torso only received marginal protection (adequate for the driver's left femur), whereas in the latter, the driver had adequate protection for their torso and both him and the front passenger only had marginal protection for their femurs.

Parents will be glad to know the Defender is very safe for child occupants, with the tests showing nothing but green (good protection) across the board. Somewhat surprisingly for a vehicle this size and shape, the Landie also scored well in the vulnerable road users section. Not only does the automated emergency braking system work in most cases involving pedestrians, but if there is a crash, the Defender offers good leg and head protection - not so great for the pelvis, though.

These tests show that some of that complex technology certain people moan about went into making the new Defender a safer car, which was one of the major drawbacks of the old one. You know, besides its terrible ride, handling, comfort, and so on.