United States. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) challenges automakers with stricter criteria to award the Top Safety Pick award.
Despite the stricter requirements, 71 models are up for the 2024 awards. Of those, 22 earn TOP SAFETY PICK+ and 49 earn TOP SAFETY PICK.
"We are following the more stringent requirements we introduced last year with another major update to the award criteria in 2024," said IIHS President David Harkey.
"This year's winners are truly outstanding and offer the highest level of protection for both vehicle occupants and other vulnerable road users," he says.
Last year's biggest change was the replacement of the original side-crash test with an updated version that uses a heavier barrier that travels at higher speeds. Initially, an acceptable or good rating was enough to earn the lower-level Top Safety Pick award. In 2024, a good qualification for Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ is required.
In addition, vehicles now need an acceptable or good rating on a revised version of the Pedestrian Frontal Crash Avoidance Assessment to qualify for any of the awards. The new version replaces the previous day and night tests with a single assessment that includes some tests in daylight and others in the dark.
Last year, vehicles could win the lower-tier award regardless of whether they could detect and avoid pedestrians in the dark.
In an even bigger change, the updated Moderate Front Overlay Test replaced the original assessment in the 2024 TOP SAFETY PICK+ requirements. Vehicles now need an acceptable or good rating in the updated assessment, which adds a second mannequin sitting behind the driver and emphasizes rear-seat safety. A good score on the original moderate overlap test is still needed to earn the basic Top Safety Pick award.
As before, to win any of the prizes, a vehicle must offer good protection in a small overlapping frontal crash, in which 25% of the vehicle's width on each side collides with another vehicle or stationary object. This year, driver-side and passenger-side evaluations have been combined into a single rating. The test is performed on both the driver's and passenger's side, and the rating is equivalent to the lesser of the two results.
Award winners must also have good or acceptable headlights equipped on all trim levels.
Hyundai Motor Group, which includes the Genesis, Hyundai and Kia brands, has the most awards in 2024 overall: six TOP SAFETY PICK+ awards and 10 TOP SAFETY PICK awards for a total of 16. Toyota Motor Corp., which includes the Toyota and Lexus brands, has the next highest total with a TOP SAFETY PICK+ award and 12 TOP SAFETY PICK awards. Mazda wins the most TOP SAFETY PICK+ awards of any brand, with five, as well as a TOP SAFETY PICK.
By class, small SUVs, midsize SUVs, and midsize luxury SUVs are tied for the most TOP SAFETY PICK+ awards, with five each. Midsize luxury SUVs, which qualify for an additional 12 BEST SAFETY PICK awards, get the most awards overall. Relatively few cars and trucks qualify for any of the awards.
"The sheer number of award-winning SUVs likely reflects the dominance of those vehicles in the U.S. market," Harkey said. "But it's disappointing that only four pickup trucks and four midsize cars get awards, considering the popularity of those classes."
The changes to the 2024 award criteria are designed to push automakers to seek higher levels of safety.
The IIHS introduced the original moderate overlap front test in 1995. At the time, most vehicles earned poor or marginal ratings. Over the past decade, virtually every vehicle tested scored well thanks to stronger structures, the introduction of curtain front and side airbags, and a number of improvements in seat belt technology.
Driver of a model rated as poor.
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