 Top
Safety Picks 2009
To determine crashworthiness — how well a vehicle protects its occupants in
a crash — the Institute rates vehicles good, acceptable, marginal, or poor
based on performance in high-speed front and side crash tests, plus evaluations
of seat/head restraints for protection against neck injuries in rear impacts. To
earnTop Safety Pick for 2009 a vehicle must have good ratings
in all three Institute tests. In addition, the winning vehicles must offer electronic
stability control.
40 mph frontal offset crash tests are good assessments of vehicles'
structural designs.
Frontal offset crash test details, ratings criteria,
and crash test verification program
Side crash tests are good assessments of occupant protection when
vehicles are struck in the side by SUVs or pickups.
Side impact crash test details and ratings criteria
Vehicles equipped with side airbag protection
systems
Rear crash protection/head restraint ratings focus on how well
seat/head restraint combinations protect against whiplash injury.
Procedures for rating seat/head
restraints
Rear crash protection ratings by make:
NEW Roof crush rating system
— The Institute's roof strength rating system will help consumers pick vehicles
that will help protect them in rollover crashes. Roof strength will become a component
of the Top Safety Pick criteria for 2010 models.
To measure roof strength, a metal plate is pushed against one corner of a vehicle's
roof at a constant speed. The maximum force sustained by the roof before 5 inches
of crush is compared to the vehicle's weight to find the strength-to-weight ratio.
This is a good assessment of vehicle structural protection in rollover crashes.
March 24, 2009 news release: Roof strength is focus of new rating
system; 4 of 12 small SUVs evaluated earn top marks;
Electronic stability control (ESC) significantly reduces crash
risk, especially the risk of fatal single-vehicle crashes, by helping drivers maintain
control of their vehicles during emergency maneuvers.
Vehicles equipped with ESC by make and model
Bumpers — The Institute's series of 4 tests (front and rear
full-width impacts at 6 mph and front and rear corner impacts at 3 mph) produce
the kinds and amounts of damage that commonly occur in low-speed collisions.
Each vehicle is run into a steel barrier designed to mimic the design of a car bumper,
with the barrier's plastic absorber and flexible cover simulating typical cars'
energy absorbers and plastic bumper covers. These tests are designed to drive bumper
improvements that lead to better protection from damage in a range of real-world
crashes.
News releases (links go directly to tables of vehicle repair costs):
Small cars: September 4, 2008
Minivans: December 20, 2007
Luxury cars: August 2, 2007
Midsize cars: March 1, 2007
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