IIHS Rates Eight Small Pickups, All Have Poor Headlights
None qualify for a safety award
About 100 vehicles have received a safety award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for 2017, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a small pickup on the list. In a recent round of testing, the agency examined eight small trucks and found a few key shortcomings.
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IIHS rated the crew cab and extended cab versions of four different models: the Toyota Tacoma, Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon, and the Nissan Frontier. These trucks all offered nothing but Poor-rated headlights, preventing them from earning a Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ award.
On the bright side, half of the pickups performed well in all five crash categories, including the difficult small overlap test. The Tacoma crew cab and extended cab, Chevrolet Colorado crew cab, and GMC Canyon crew cab each earned overall "Good" ratings in the small overlap, which replicates what happens when the front corner of a car hits a tree, pole, or another vehicle at 40 mph. The Tacoma crew cab made the best showing with "Good" sub-ratings for structure, restraints and kinematics, and all injury measures except the lower leg and foot category, in which it received an "Acceptable" score. This model was the only vehicle to receive a "Good" rating in the structure subcategory by preserving survival space for the dummy in a crash.
Extended cab Colorados and Canyons performed slightly worse than their crew cab counterparts, earning an "Acceptable" rating in the small overlap examination. Both the Nissan Frontier crew cab and extended cab were deemed "Marginal," as the structure allowed considerable intrusion into the occupant compartment during a crash. IIHS concluded drivers were likely to suffer serious injuries in a real-world crash under the same conditions.
Another category IIHS takes into consideration when doling out awards is front crash prevention technology. Only the Colorado and Canyon offer this tech, but both are rated "Basic" and are limited to front collision warning with no automatic emergency braking (AEB) capability. For 2018, the Tacoma is set to receive a standard AEB system with pedestrian detection as well as upgraded headlights.
The 2017 Honda Ridgeline, categorized as a large pickup by IIHS, earned a Top Safety Pick+ award. It nabbed "Good" marks in all crash categories as well as a "Good" headlight rating and "Superior" front crash prevention score.
Source: IIHS
When I tell people I write about cars, the most common reply I receive is “Really?” I guess I never strike people as a car type as I drive down the freeway in the right lane going 60 mph in my old SUV. My gripes about driving in city traffic and fast drivers don’t help my case, either. For a time, the only cars I liked were old cars. Not old as in "classic" or "vintage," but as in well-worn. My first appreciation of cars came when I drove a very old Ford pickup. It wasn't perfect: I used a booster seat to reach the gas pedal, and the turn signal once fell off in my hand as I was learning to drive. But the thing I valued most was the memories. It took several years for me to truly become a "car person." Being a long-time writer and an avid reader has helped me develop a healthy curiosity and a desire to know how things work. This has made cars one of the most fascinating points of study for me because they are such intricate machines. I am interested in how cars can reach 200 mph, how they can run on hydrogen, and how they can drive and park on their own. I also enjoy learning how cars can solve problems whether it be in the form of reducing pollution, minimizing traffic, or helping people stay connected on the road. Yes, maybe I’m not a gearhead. Perhaps I’m a car nerd. Either way, I very much enjoy writing about cars and helping people stay in tune with the automotive industry. I wouldn't want to be writing about anything else. And don’t get me wrong: I know how to drool over a hot car. I am fascinated by the Tesla Model S, awed by the Lamborghini Veneno, and am hopelessly obsessed with the Audi R8.
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