Archive for the ‘IIHS’ Category

The coveted Top Safety Pick designation from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) used to be quite exclusive—and a way for safety-conscious shoppers to narrow down their possibilities to a few top-rated vehicles in a segment. But since 2007, the number of Top Safety Picks has roughly doubled each year, going from just 23 vehicles then to 94 models—a huge portion of the new-car market—for 2009.

That’s slated to change beginning with 2010, as the IIHS requires that vehicles be rated ‘good’ in its new roof strength test in order to be named a Top Safety Pick.

The result—at least so far for 2010—is that the Institute’s 94...

The stylish and delicate-looking front and rear bumper areas of most new vehicles are, just as they appear, damage-prone and expensive to fix, even from minor parking-lot-speed impacts. However the new 2010 Subaru Legacy fares well; in the latest round of bumper evaluations from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), it gets one of the best ratings yet.

The most impressive area of improvement was in the front full-width test, where the vehicle is run into a steel barrier that simulates another car bumper. In this, the 2010 Subaru Legacy sustained just $847 in damage, versus an estimated $4,049 for the previous 2007 Legacy...

If you consider safety one of the top priorities in your next new-car purchase—as you should—and are carefully combing through features and occupant protection ratings, you're in for a pleasant surprise: There are a lot more models designated Top Safety Picks this year from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Why? Although some models have been redesigned with stronger, more crash-resistant structures, improved side protection, and other features, along with electronic stability control (a requisite for the award), in a number of other models it was as simple as redesigning the seats.

The 2010 Chrysler Sebring and 2010 Dodge...