Dodge Dart and three others latest to earn IIHS Top Safety Pick

Jeffrey N. Ross — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 09:29:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Safety, Crossover, Dodge, Hyundai, Lexus, Subaru

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has named four more vehicles to its coveted Top Safety Pick list, which has grown to include 131 models. This time around, the 2013 Dodge Dart, Lexus ES, Hyundai Santa Fe and Subaru XV Crosstrek achieved top marks for crash safety in all applicable criteria tests. The IIHS has yet to start any large-scale tests of its new small overlap front crash test, so none of these models were subjected to this new category.

Proving how safe small cars now are, the Dart is one of 31 compact cars to grab a spot as a Top Safety Pick, being joined by XV Crosstrek. This is definitely good news for Subaru as, aside from the old-bodied Impreza WRX, its lineup of new products is on this list of safe vehicles.

While the new Santa Fe was named as a Top Safety Pick, it was actually the smaller Santa Fe Sport that was crash tested by Hyundai rather than the three-row model that now wears this name. Finally, both the hybrid (ES 300h) and non-hybrid versions of the new Lexus ES made the cut even though it is listed solely as the ES 350.

Continue reading Dodge Dart and three others latest to earn IIHS Top Safety Pick

Dodge Dart and three others latest to earn IIHS Top Safety Pick originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Ford F-150, Toyota Tundra earn IIHS Top Safety Pick Awards

Zach Bowman — Thu, 12 May 2011 18:20:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Safety, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Nissan, Toyota

IIHS Full-Size Pickup Rollover Crash Testing - Click above for high-res image gallery

Like their body-on-frame SUV cousins, full-size pickup trucks are more prone to roll over than a standard passenger car. That's exactly why it's so important to have a vehicle that earns good marks in roof-strength tests. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has just released the data on its recent volley of tests on full-size pickup trucks, and both the 2011 Ford F-150 and 2011 Toyota Tundra earned the coveted Top Safety Pick designation. The vehicles earned the highest possible rating of 'good' in the institutes crush test, where a large steel plate is pressed against one corner of the roof to calculate a strength-to-weight ratio.

Meanwhile, the 2011 Nissan Titan took home an acceptable rating in the rollover evaluation while the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado, 2011 GMC Sierra and 2011 Ram 1500 netted marginal scores.

IIHS says that the roof on the Toyota Tundra stood up to 4.5 times the truck's weight while the F-150 handled 4.7 times the pressure. A vehicle must withstand 4 times its weight before five-inches of crush is detected before being awarded a Good rating. Hit the jump for the full press release.

Continue reading Ford F-150, Toyota Tundra earn IIHS Top Safety Pick Awards

Ford F-150, Toyota Tundra earn IIHS Top Safety Pick Awards originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 12 May 2011 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments