These Are The 38 Safest Cars On The Road For 2017
Want to know which are the safest cars on the road? The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is here with the answers. Every year the non-governmental body tests all the cars on the market in America and determines which are the safest among them. And this year's tests were even more rigorous than before.
Last year the IIHS added new evaluation criteria for headlights, but waited until this year to integrate their results into its overall ratings. All told, 38 models earned the Top Safety Pick + rating for 2017, with another 44 earning the slightly less stringent Top Safety Pick. That's a smaller crop than last year, but not as small as the institute was expecting.
So without further ado, here are the vehicles that won the 2017 IIHS Top Safety Pick +:
Small Cars:
Chevrolet Volt
Hyundai Elantra (sedan only; built after March 2016)
Mazda 3 (4-door sedan | 4-door hatchback)
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Prius (built after August 2016)
Midsize cars:
Honda Accord 4-door
Mazda 6
Nissan Altima
Nissan Maxima
Subaru Legacy
Subaru Outback
Toyota Camry
Toyota Prius v
Volkswagen Jetta
Midsize luxury cars:
Audi A4
Lexus ES 350
Volvo S60
Volvo V60
Large luxury cars:
Genesis G80
Genesis G90
Lexus RC
Small SUVs:
Mazda CX-3
Mitsubishi Outlander
Nissan Rogue
Subaru Forester (built after October 2016)
Toyota RAV4
Midsize SUVs:
Honda Pilot
Hyundai Santa Fe (built after March 2016)
Midsize luxury SUVs:
Acura MDX
Acura RDX
Audi Q5
Buick Envision
Lexus NX
Lexus RX
Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class
Volvo XC60
Minivan: Chrysler Pacifica (built after August 2016)
Large pickup: Honda Ridgeline
Toyota (including Lexus) walks away with nine TSP+ winners, followed by Honda (and Acura) with five.
The IIHS notes that only seven models earned top marks in the new headlight tests – namely the Chevy Volt, Honda Ridgeline, Hyundai Elantra and Santa Fe, Subaru Legacy, Toyota Prius V, and Volvo XC60.
Three Japanese manufacturers also upgraded the headlights on some of their models after falling short in last year's inaugural testing. The Subaru Forester's headlights, as a result, improved from Poor to Acceptable, the Mitsubishi Outlander from Marginal to Acceptable, and the Toyota Prius from Poor to Acceptable.
In order to win the best overall grade, vehicles have to score Good ratings in the five crashworthiness tests, an Advanced or Superior rating for front crash prevention and a Good or Acceptable headlight rating. Those that don't feature crash prevention systems or score top marks for their headlights can still earn the "regular" Top Safety Pick, and here are this year's winners:
Minicars:
Mini Cooper Hardtop 2-door
Toyota Yaris iA
Small cars:
Acura ILX
Honda Civic 2-door
Honda Civic 4-door
Lexus CT 200h
Nissan Sentra
Subaru Crosstrek
Subaru WRX
Volkswagen Golf 4-door
Volkswagen Golf Alltrack
Volkswagen Golf Sportwagen
Volkswagen GTI 4-door
Midsize cars:
Chevrolet Malibu
Chrysler 200
Ford Fusion
Honda Accord 2-door
Hyundai Sonata
Kia Optima
Volkswagen Passat
Midsize luxury cars:
Audi A3
BMW 2 series
Lincoln MKZ
Mercedes-Benz C-Class 4-door
Large car: Toyota Avalon
Large luxury cars:
Acura RLX
Audi A6
Infiniti Q70 (except V8 4-wheel drive models)
Volvo S90
Small SUVs:
BMW X1
Fiat 500X
Hyundai Tucson
Kia Sportage
Midsize SUVs:
GMC Acadia
Hyundai Santa Fe Sport
Kia Sorento
Nissan Murano
Nissan Pathfinder
Midsize luxury SUVs:
Cadillac XT5
Infiniti QX60
Lincoln MKX
Volvo XC90
Large SUV: Audi Q7
Minivan: Kia Sedona