The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has released its list of 57 vehicles that earned 2019 Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ awards. The agency has begun implementing stricter criteria for the new awards cycle.
Vehicles must earn a “Good” rating in the passenger-side small overlap test to qualify for Top Safety Pick+, the agency’s highest award. Previously, cars could get by with an “Acceptable” rating. The passenger-side test replicates what happens when the front right corner of a vehicle hits another vehicle or object at 40 mph.
Thirty vehicles received this award, and Subaru took the lead. Seven of its models—including the Ascent, Crosstrek, Impreza sedan and wagon, Legacy, Outback, and weird RX—earned the award. Other winners in this category include the Acura RDX, BMW 5 Series, BMW X3, Genesis G70, Genesis G80, Genesis G90, Honda Insight, Hyundai Elantra, Hyundai Kona, Hyundai Santa Fe, Hyundai Sonata, Kia Forte, Kia Niro hybrid and plug-in, Kia Optima, Kia Sorento, Lexus ES, Mazda CX-5, Mercedes-Benz E-Class four-door sedan, Mercedes-Benz GLC, Mercedes-Benz GLE, Toyota Avalon, and Toyota Camry.
The 2019 Kia Forte, an IIHS 2019 Top Safety Pick+ recipient, in the small overlap front driver-side test
These “+” vehicles must earn “Good” ratings in every crash category, as well as an “Advanced” or “Superior” score in front crash prevention. They also need a “Good” headlight rating to earn the award.
The Top Safety Pick award without the “+” is a little less stringent since vehicles only need an “Acceptable” rating in the passenger-side small overlap test and the headlight test. Twenty-seven vehicles qualified for this award: Audi A3, Audi A4, BMW X2, Chrysler Pacifica, Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio four-door sedan, Honda Accord, Honda CR-V, Honda Odyssey, Honda Pilot, Hyundai Elantra GT, Hyundai Ioniq hybrid and plug-in, Hyundai Santa Fe XL, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Cadenza, Kia Soul, Mazda CX-3, Mazda CX-9, Mercedes-Benz C-Class four-door sedan, Mitsubishi Outlander, Nissan Altima, Nissan Kicks, Nissan Pathfinder, Toyota Corolla four-door hatch, Toyota Highlander, and Subaru Forester.
The Pilot earned an “Acceptable” rating in the passenger-side test, which prevented it from earning the “+” distinction. In the case of the Accent, Kicks, Pacifica, Pathfinder, and Highlander, it was “Acceptable” ratings in the passenger-side test and the headlight test that fell short.
A number of brands failed to qualify for any award. These include Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Jeep, Lincoln, Ram, and Tesla. Volvo is absent from the list because of missing passenger-side small overlap test results.
IIHS will continue doling out awards as it evaluates additional models for the 2019 cycle.
Source: IIHS
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