The U.S.-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has revealed its 2014 list of the safest vehicles on the market, with a total of 22 vehicles receiving a top safety pick designation.
Based on crash-test performance, a total of 39 vehicles met the 2014 criteria for the IIHS safety awards. But for the first time, vehicles featuring an effective front crash-prevention system received a special “plus” designation.
Examples of front crash-prevention systems are the forward collision-warning system, which monitors the road ahead and can warn a driver of an imminent emergency, or an automatic-braking system, which can take action if the driver doesn’t brake fast enough.
“These are the systems that hold the promise of preventing a lot of crashes from happening altogether,” Russ Rader of IIHS told Canada AM.
TOP SAFETY PICK +
Small Cars
- Honda Civic Hybrid
- Mazda 3 (Built after October 2013)
- Toyota Prius (Built after November 2013)
Midsize moderately priced cars
- Ford Fusion
- Honda Accord 2-door
- Honda Accord 4-door
- Mazda 6
- Subaru Legacy
- Subaru Outback
Midsize Luxury/near luxury cars
- Infiniti Q50
- Lincoln MKZ
- Volvo S60
Large luxury cars
- Acura RLX
- Volvo S80
- Small SUVs
- Mazda CX-5 (built after October 2013)
- Mitsubishi Outlander
- Subaru Forester
Midsize SUV
- Toyota Highlander
Midsize luxury SUVs
- Acura MDX
- Mercedes-Benz M-Class (Built after August 2013)
- Volvo XC60
Minivan
- Honda Odyssey
TOP SAFETY PICK
Minicar
- Chevrolet Spark
Small cars
- Dodge Dart
- Ford Focus
- Honda Civic 2-door
- Hyundai Elantra
- Scion TC
- Subaru Impreza
- Subaru XV Crosstrek
Midsize moderately priced cars
- Chrysler 200
- Dodge Avenger
- Kia Optima
- Nissan Altima
- Toyota Camry (Built after November 2013)
- Volkswagen Passat
Midsize luxury/Near-luxury cars
- Acura TL
Small SUVS
- Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
Midsize luxury SUVs
- Volvo XC90
