- the insurance institute for highway safety (iihs) is bestowing the top safety pick+ award onto 65 models for 2022, up from 49 last year.
- every top safety pick+ winner must have a headlight rating of good or acceptable, and 31 of the winners exclusively feature good-rated headlights.
- the number of minivans and trucks receiving iihs awards also increased dramatically compared with 2021.
the insurance institute for highway safety (iihs) updated the criteria for earning a top safety pick and top safety pick+ for the 2020 model year to include headlight quality, prompting many automakers to upgrade their forward illumination for 2021. now the iihs says that for 2022, even more vehicles have received the top safety pick and top safety pick+ designations thanks to better headlights.
the iihs is conferring the highest award to 65 models for 2022, up from 49 last year, with 36 vehicles earning the lower top safety pick award. the top safety pick+ honorees all feature good or acceptable headlights as standard, and the iihs says that 31 of the winners come exclusively with headlights rated as good. the overall leader is the hyundai motor group—made up of hyundai, kia, and genesis—with 11 top safety pick+ and 10 top safety pick accolades. volkswagen group, which includes volkswagen and audi, is second with eight of the former and three of the later, while volvo earned 10 top safety pick+ awards.
the iihs also noted that the number of qualifying minivans doubled, with the toyota sienna, honda odyssey, chrysler pacifica, and kia carnival all receiving an award. four pickup trucks were also recognized—the ram 1500 crew cab, ford f-150 extended cab and crew cab, and hyundai santa cruz—compared to just one, the ram, last year.
more 2022 award winners offer automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection systems as standard equipment than before. just two top safety pick+ and six top safety pick winners don’t have crash prevention systems with an advanced or superior rating as standard. the iihs says that automakers have promised to make the automatic emergency braking standard on nearly all light-duty vehicles starting this september.
new criteria are coming for 2023. the side-impact test will now be conducted with a heavier movable barrier at a higher speed, with a good rating necessary to receive the top safety pick+ award. an advanced or superior rating on a new nighttime pedestrian crash prevention test will also be necessary for the top safety pick+ award. good or acceptable headlights will also need to be standard on all trim levels in order to receive either award.