Hyundai takes top spot in US crash test ratings
Hyundai Santa Fe / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group
By Park Jae-hyuk
Hyundai Motor Group said Friday that it has earned the most awards from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) this year for its high crash test ratings.
According to the U.S.-based organization’s latest safety ratings released Thursday (local time), six models from Korea’s largest carmaker received the highest rating of Top Safety Pick Plus, which was awarded to just 15 models worldwide.
The six were the Santa Fe, Santa Fe Sport, Genesis G80, Genesis G90, Kia Forte sedan and Kia Soul.
Four Subaru models qualified for the award, while Mercedes-Benz had two, and Toyota, BMW and Ford earned one each.
Hyundai’s recent achievement is regarded as significant, given that the IIHS strengthened its requirements this year to include headlights and passenger-side protection in small overlap front crashes.
The inclusion of a passenger-side small overlap crash test is a first for any IIHS award.
A small overlap front crash test sends a vehicle into a barrier at 40 mph with just 25 percent of the vehicle’s front end hitting the barrier, unlike the previous off-set test where 40 percent of the total width of a vehicle struck the barrier.
The higher standards reduced the number of models qualifying for the top ratings from 38 last year to 15. A grade lower rating of Top Safety Pick was awarded to 47 vehicles. Toyota had the most vehicles on the list with 10, while Hyundai was the runner-up with nine.
The latest result is expected to contribute to the successful launch of the G70 and other Hyundai cars in the U.S. market in the first half of next year.
“The IIHS crash test ratings have again proven the high safety of our vehicles,” a Hyundai Motor Group official said. “All of our employees will continue to do our best to produce cars with customer safety as the top priority.”
Founded in 1959 as a non-profit organization, the IIHS has annually announced the results of its crash tests on hundreds of cars.
It has been recognizing vehicles with the Top Safety Pick since 2006 to help consumers identify vehicles with the highest safety ratings without having to wade through information about individual tests.
The Top Safety Pick Plus accolade was introduced in the 2013 model year to recognize vehicles that offer a superior level of safety. Over the years, the IIHS has added to and strengthened criteria for both awards, pushing automakers to speed up safety advances.
The institute releases ratings as it evaluates new models, adjusting the list of winners throughout the year. By fall of 2017, 69 vehicles had earned 2017 Top Safety Pick Plus and 51 had earned 2017 Top Safety Pick.