MG S5 EV Five-Star ANCAP Safety Rating: What Redlands Buyers Need to Know

The MG S5 EV achieves a five-star ANCAP safety rating (the highest possible result) under the demanding 2023-2025 assessment criteria. Introduced to Australia in May 2025, the MG S5 EV is a small battery-electric SUV available in four variants across two battery sizes. The rating was published in May 2025 and applies to all variants built from March 2025 onwards.

With an Adult Occupant Protection score of 90 per cent, the MG S5 EV matches the MG HS as the joint highest adult occupant result across the MG range currently rated by ANCAP. The full MG S5 EV range is available at Bartons MG at 103 Redland Bay Road, Capalaba, your local MG dealer serving the Redlands Coast and South East Queensland.

The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) independently crash-tests and rates new vehicles sold in Australia and New Zealand at accredited facilities, completely independently of manufacturer safety claims. A five-star rating is the highest result achievable.

ANCAP assesses four key categories: Adult Occupant Protection, Child Occupant Protection, Vulnerable Road User Protection, and Safety Assist. The MG S5 EV performed strongly across all four.

The MG S5 EV (built from March 2025) achieved the following results under 2023-2025 criteria:

The rating applies to all four variants sold in Australia and New Zealand, built from March 2025 onwards. It expires in December 2031.

What Was Tested

The MG S5 EV was assessed through a frontal offset test at 50 km/h, a full-width frontal test at 50 km/h, a side impact at 60 km/h, an oblique pole test at 32 km/h, far-side impact tests, and whiplash protection assessments.

What the Results Show

Adult occupant protection is the MG S5 EV's strongest category at 90 per cent. The passenger compartment remained stable in the frontal offset test. The driver received adequate chest and upper leg protection, with good results across all other body regions. Dashboard structures were noted as a potential source of injury for the driver, and a 0.50-point deduction was applied for variable contact. The front passenger received adequate chest protection, with good results across all other critical body areas. The vehicle-to-vehicle compatibility penalty was 1.72 points, indicating a relatively low risk to occupants of an oncoming vehicle.

In the full-width frontal test, driver protection was adequate for the chest and good across all other critical body areas. For the rear passenger, neck and chest protection were both adequate, with good protection of all other body areas.

The side impact result was exceptional: the MG S5 EV scored the maximum available 6.00 points, with good protection across all critical body regions. For Redlands families navigating the arterial intersections along Redland Bay Road and through the Capalaba retail precinct, that side-impact result is directly relevant to everyday driving. The oblique pole test returned near-maximum points at 5.93 out of 6.

The far-side impact score was the full 4.00 out of 4.00, with the centre airbag providing good head protection for both front seat occupants. Doors passed submergence testing, though window opening functionality was not demonstrated. No eCall system is fitted (0.67 default awarded). Multi-collision braking earned 1.00 point.

What Was Tested

Child occupant protection is assessed through dynamic crash testing using six-year-old and ten-year-old child dummies in frontal offset and side impact scenarios, as well as a practical assessment of how standard Australian and New Zealand child restraints can be installed.

What the Results Show

The MG S5 EV returned strong child occupant crash test results. In the frontal offset test, protection was good for all critical body areas of both child dummies, with the ten-year-old dummy's neck rated adequate. The frontal test scored 15.96 out of 16. In the side impact, protection of all critical body areas was good for both dummies, with maximum 8.00 out of 8 points scored.

The MG S5 EV is fitted with ISOFix lower anchorages on both rear outboard seats and top tether anchorages across all rear seating positions. Most assessed child restraint types can be installed in most rear positions. One practical note for Redlands families: both booster seat types could not be correctly installed in the centre rear position. Families who regularly use a booster in the middle seat should plan to use the outboard positions. Our team at Bartons MG Capalaba can help you find the right seating arrangement.

The MG S5 EV is fitted with a child presence detection (CPD) system as standard across all rear seats in both Australia and New Zealand. The system is fitted to the vehicle, but the CPD system did not meet ANCAP's specific assessment requirements and scored zero points. The system is present but its performance did not reach the ANCAP threshold in testing.

What Was Tested

Vulnerable road user (VRU) protection covers the physical construction of the vehicle's bonnet and windscreen and the performance of the AEB system in detecting and reacting to pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists.

Physical Impact Results

The MG S5 EV bonnet and windscreen provided good or adequate head protection to pedestrians over most of the bonnet surface, with marginal and poor results at the stiff windscreen pillars, the base of the windscreen, and the front of the bonnet. Pelvis protection was mixed, with areas of good and poor performance. Femur protection was good to marginal. Lower leg protection was good, with maximum points awarded.

Autonomous Emergency Braking: Pedestrians, Cyclists, and Motorcyclists

The VRU AEB system operates from 4 km/h to 85 km/h. Whether navigating the school zones along Redland Bay Road, sharing the road with cyclists on the Redlands Coast trail network, or moving through the Capalaba Central car park during busy periods, the system covers the scenarios Redlands drivers face daily.

Forward pedestrian AEB was the standout result, earning the full 7.00 out of 7 points with collisions avoided or mitigated in all forward test scenarios including turning scenarios, day and night. In reverse (AEB Backover), performance was rated marginal, providing some mitigation but not reliably in driveways and car parks.

Cyclist AEB performance was rated good, with collisions avoided or mitigated at all test speeds including turning scenarios. The MG S5 EV provides an information-only alert when a cyclist is approaching from behind, with no warning or door retention provided. This is a lower level of cyclist dooring protection than the MG HS and MG 7, and is worth noting around the Capalaba Central and Park Ridge Road precincts.

Motorcyclist AEB in forward scenarios was rated adequate, including in turning scenarios. The lane support system in car-to-motorcyclist emergency lane keeping scenarios was rated weak (0.50 out of 3), which is the primary underperformance area in this category and is worth noting for motorway driving on the Gateway and Pacific Motorway routes used by Redlands commuters.

What Was Tested

Safety Assist evaluates the active safety technology suite: AEB for car-to-car scenarios, lane support, speed assistance, seat belt reminders, and driver monitoring.

Car-to-Car AEB

The MG S5 EV AEB system operates from 4 km/h to 150 km/h. Testing returned good performance across all standard car-to-car tests. AEB Junction and Crossing performance were both good, which is directly relevant to the intersection-heavy road network through the Redlands. However, AEB Head-On performance was weak (0.25 out of 1), meaning the system is largely ineffective at detecting a head-on collision with an oncoming vehicle, which is worth noting for highway driving.

Lane Support System

The lane support system operates from 60 to 150 km/h. Both LKA and ELK were rated good in car-to-car testing, earning the full 3.00 out of 3 points, a perfect lane support score and one of the MG S5 EV's genuine strengths in Safety Assist, particularly relevant for Gateway and Pacific Motorway commutes.

Speed Assistance and Driver Monitoring

The MGS5 EV includes a speed assistance system with camera and map-based speed sign recognition, a manual speed limiter, and an intelligent speed limiter as standard. Intelligent adaptive cruise control (iACC) is not available.

A direct driver monitoring system (DMS) is fitted as standard, detecting driver fatigue with warning and intervention capability. Distraction detection is also present but provided a warning only, with no intervention, reflected in a driver monitoring score of 0.90 out of 2. No eCall system is fitted. Seat belt reminders with occupancy detection for all seating positions scored the full 1.00 out of 1.

The following safety features are standard across all MG S5 EV variants sold in Australia and New Zealand:

• Dual frontal airbags (driver and front passenger)
• Side chest-protecting airbags (front seats)
• Side head-protecting curtain airbags (front and second-row seats)
• Centre airbag
• Autonomous emergency braking: car-to-car (4-150 km/h), pedestrian forward and reverse, cyclist, and motorcyclist
• AEB Junction (car, pedestrian, cyclist, and motorcyclist) and AEB Crossing
• AEB Head-On
• Lane keep assist (LKA) and emergency lane keeping (ELK)
• Lane departure warning (LDW)
• Forward collision warning (FCW)
• Blind spot monitoring (BSM)
• Speed sign recognition (camera and map), manual speed limiter, and intelligent speed limiter
• Direct driver monitoring system (fatigue detection with intervention; distraction warning)
• Child presence detection system (all rear seats, standard; did not meet ANCAP assessment requirements)
• Cyclist dooring information alert (information only, no warning or door retention)
• Seat belt reminders with occupancy detection (all seating positions)
• Multi-collision braking system
• ISOFix anchorages (rear outboard seats) and top tether anchorages (all rear positions)
• Rescue sheet for emergency responders

At Bartons MG, we believe Redlands buyers deserve honest, complete information about the safety of every vehicle they consider. The MG S5 EV's five-star ANCAP result is independently verified, and its 90 per cent adult occupant score and perfect lane support result place it among the stronger-performing small electric SUVs available in Australia at its price point.

For Redlands buyers making the move to electric, the MG S5 EV delivers a five-star rated, comprehensively equipped BEV across four variants. Come and see us at 103 Redland Bay Road, Capalaba, take the MG S5 EV for a test drive, and let our team help you choose the right battery size and trim. Call (07) 3245 2200 or visit BartonsMG.com.au to browse current stock or book a test drive online.