Holden will launch the all-new Cruze into the Australian small car market next month with the five-star safety rating following indepndent crash testing by ANCAP. Cruze scored 35.04 points out of a possible 37 in the ANCAP testing.

A combination of its high-strength structure and a host of active and passive safety systems make Cruze one of the safest cars in its class.

Cruze's structure has been designed to provide maximum protection including front and rear crush zones engineered to collapse in a controlled manner to absorb crash energy. A collapsible pedal assembly also helps to reduce the chance of lower extremity injuries to the driver in a frontal collision.

In addition to its extremely strong passenger compartment, Cruze includes a full range of active and passive safety systems as standard across the range including:

GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director, Mark Reuss said safety was at the core of the vehicle's global development program.

"We know that today's motorists want many things from a small car and that includes no compromises on safety," Mr Reuss said.

"Incredibly high benchmarks were set as the Cruze was being developed and the results show.

"This is a world-class car with a safety rating to match.

"We welcome ANCAP's response to Cruze's strong safety features."

Cruze is the first vehicle in General Motors' new portfolio of global products and enters the Australian market equipped with bold looks, a high level of standard features and advanced interior styling and comfort.

It will go on sale early June powered by a 1.8 litre four-cylinder ECOTEC petrol engine on the CD & CDX or a 2.0 litre four-cylinder turbocharged common rail diesel engine on the CD model.