Audi's redesigned 2012 A6 was recently named a Top Safety Pick for large luxury sedans by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). According to Family Car Guide, the German automaker has three other cars in its current lineup, which have also been awarded top safety picks for their classes – the 2011 A3, A4 and Q5.

The A6 received "good" ratings in all four safety categories – front, side and rear impact tests and roof strength. Roof strength tests are administered to see how well the car would do in a rollover crash, and any strength-to-weight ratio above a 4 is considered good. The A6 was able to withstand forces that were 4.9 times the weight of the car.

Inside Line reports that the 2012 A6 is made primarily of aluminum to reduce the overall weight of the vehicle, so the roof strength score is all the more impressive. The new model is 176 pounds lighter than the 2011 A6, and the news source refers to it as a large mid-size sedan, but IIHS counted it among the large luxury sedans, so maybe next year Audi will find new ways to make the car smaller and lighter.