But it still didn’t earn the agency’s Top Safety Pick designation.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has completed crash tests for 11 pickups and rated only one of them with a Top Safety Pick rating – the Honda Ridgeline. The Ford F-150 was the only to score the top Good rating in all the crash tests, but it wasn’t a Top Safety Pick because the organization gave the headlights a Poor score – the lowest possible grade.
The agency tested the Chevrolet Colorado, Chevy Silverado 1500, Ford F-150, GMC Canyon, GMC Sierra 1500, Honda Ridgeline, Nissan Frontier, Nissan Titan, Ram 1500 (built after July 2018), Toyota Tacoma, and Toyota Tundra. All of the trucks stored Good ratings in the driver side evaluation, except for the Frontier and Tundra that received Marginal scores.
The IIHS put a particular emphasis on the passenger side small-overlap front crash test scores because the organization recently started conducting this evaluation. Only the Ford F-150, Nissan Titan, and Ram 1500 received Good grades for the passenger. The Honda Ridgeline and Toyota Tacoma were Acceptable. The IIHS gave Marginal scores to the Chevy Colorado, Chevy Silverado, GMC Canyon, GMC Sierra 1500, and Nissan Frontier. The Toyota Tundra was the only model to get a Poor score.
“We commend Ford, Nissan and Ram for providing state-of-the-art crash protection for both drivers and front passengers of their large pickup models,” David Zuby, IIHS chief research officer, said in the organization’s announcement. “As a group, however, the pickup class still has a lot of work to do.”
While the Ridgeline doesn’t have a Good passenger side score, it’s the only 2019 pickup so far to have a Top Safety Pick. The honor is due to the Honda’s Good score for the headlights – a grade that no other truck yet has.
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IIHS News | March 21, 2019Subscribe
Most pickups need better passenger-side protection
ARLINGTON, Va. — The majority of pickups recently put through the passenger-side small overlap front test struggled to maintain their structure, but two trucks — the Ford F-150 and the Nissan Titan — earn a good rating.
The F-150 and the Titan join the Ram 1500, whose good rating in the test was released late last year.
The Honda Ridgeline, which earns an acceptable rating in the passenger-side test, is the only pickup so far to qualify for the 2019 TOP SAFETY PICK award, thanks to available good-rated headlights, which the other models all lack, and available superior-rated front crash prevention. The Ridgeline qualifies for the award only when equipped with those features.
The Toyota Tacoma also earns an acceptable rating in the passenger-side test, but it falls short of an award because of headlights.
In total, IIHS has rated 11 crew cab pickups in the passenger-side test — four small and seven large. The Toyota Tundra, a large pickup, earns the only poor rating, while five of the trucks rate marginal.
“We commend Ford, Nissan and Ram for providing state-of-the-art crash protection for both drivers and front passengers of their large pickup models,” says David Zuby, IIHS chief research officer. “As a group, however, the pickup class still has a lot of work to do.”
A small overlap crash occurs when just the front corner of the vehicle strikes another vehicle or an object such as a tree or utility pole. IIHS began rating vehicles for protection in a driver-side small overlap front crash in 2012. In 2017, the Institute launched the passenger-side test to make sure occupants on both sides of the vehicle get equal protection.
Pickups took longer than other vehicle categories to meet the Institute’s challenge for driver-side small overlap protection, so it’s no surprise that they are lagging a bit in the newer passenger-side evaluation. Today most pickups earn a good rating in the driver-side test.
A front crash test represents a much more severe crash for a pickup than for smaller vehicles because the severity of a crash into a fixed barrier depends on the weight of the vehicle.
Most pickups need better passenger-side protection
ARLINGTON, Va. — The majority of pickups recently put through the passenger-side small overlap front test struggled to maintain their structure, but two trucks — the Ford F-150 and the Nissan Titan — earn a good rating.
The F-150 and the Titan join the Ram 1500, whose good rating in the test was released late last year.
The Honda Ridgeline, which earns an acceptable rating in the passenger-side test, is the only pickup so far to qualify for the 2019 TOP SAFETY PICK award, thanks to available good-rated headlights, which the other models all lack, and available superior-rated front crash prevention. The Ridgeline qualifies for the award only when equipped with those features.
The Ford F-150 had the best performance out of 11 pickups in the passenger-side small overlap test and is one of three to earn a good rating.
The Toyota Tacoma also earns an acceptable rating in the passenger-side test, but it falls short of an award because of headlights.
In total, IIHS has rated 11 crew cab pickups in the passenger-side test — four small and seven large. The Toyota Tundra, a large pickup, earns the only poor rating, while five of the trucks rate marginal.
“We commend Ford, Nissan and Ram for providing state-of-the-art crash protection for both drivers and front passengers of their large pickup models,” says David Zuby, IIHS chief research officer. “As a group, however, the pickup class still has a lot of work to do.”
A small overlap crash occurs when just the front corner of the vehicle strikes another vehicle or an object such as a tree or utility
pole. IIHS began rating vehicles for protection in a driver-side small overlap front crash in 2012. In 2017, the Institute launched the passenger-side test to make sure occupants on both sides of the vehicle get equal protection.
Pickups took longer than other vehicle categories to meet the Institute’s challenge for driver-side small overlap protection, so it’s no surprise that they are lagging a bit in the newer passenger-side evaluation. Today most pickups earn a good rating in the driver-side test.
A front crash test represents a much more severe crash for a pickup than for smaller vehicles because the severity of a crash into a fixed barrier depends on the weight of the vehicle.
The Ford F-150 was the best performer in
the passenger-side test. The structure held
up well with maximum intrusion of 5 inches
at the rightmost section of the toepan. The
seat belts and airbags worked well together
to control the movement of the passenger
and driver dummies, and neither dummy recorded any potential injuries.
The Tundra, in contrast, was seriously compromised by intruding structure. Maximum intrusion, also at the rightmost part of the toepan, measured 15 inches. There was also intrusion of more than a foot at the lower door hinge pillar. The passenger dummy’s head hit the grab handle attached to the A-pillar as the A-pillar intruded into the passenger’s space.
Measures taken from the dummy indicate that injuries to the right lower leg would be likely in a crash of this severity, and injuries to the right hip would be possible.
The Tundra and the Nissan Frontier, which earns a marginal rating in the passenger-side test, are still struggling with the driver-side small overlap test. Both earn a marginal rating for driver-side protection. These trucks have the oldest designs in the test group. The Frontier’s basic structure dates back to the 2005 model year, while the Tundra’s is from 2007.
Ford F-150 Is Best Performing Pickup Truck in IIHS Passenger-Side Safety Testing; Earns All Good Ratings
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rates the 2019 Ford F-150 as the only truck to earn the top-tier good rating in every category, and the best performing truck among 11 pickups evaluated in passenger-side small overlap front crash testing
Top crash test performance of 2019 Ford F-150 – including best possible rating in passenger-side small overlap front crash test – is enabled by high-strength steel in the frame plus high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy in the body and smart engineering
This follows testing by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that awarded F-150 crew cab a five-star overall vehicle score and a five-star rating for driver and passenger for all crash test modes
DEARBORN, Mich., March 21, 2019 – The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released test results showing that among all light-duty crew cab pickups measured in small overlap front crash testing for both driver and passenger, the 2019 Ford F-150 is the only truck to earn its top-tier good rating in all categories. Among 11 pickups, F-150 is also on top as the best performer in passenger-side small overlap front crash testing.
“F-150’s smart engineering, plus the innovative combination of its high-strength steel frame and high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy body continues to demonstrate enduring customer benefits – from repeated class-leading crash test performance to best-in-class towing and payload,” said Hau Thai-Tang, Ford executive vice president, Product Development and Purchasing.
A cross-functional group of Ford truck veterans worked thousands of hours to help improve durability, capability, fuel economy and safety for F-150. The team created 31 safety-related innovations – including structures that manage crash forces, plus joining methods that were tested virtually with computer simulations then retested in Ford’s advanced laboratories.
To manage crash forces in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety small overlap front crash test, Ford created a system of innovations that work together to help achieve this result. These include a patented extruded aluminum roof crossmember and additional frame crossmember that work to improve crash resilience. Other smart innovations include nylon hinge pillar reinforcements that save weight, and in conjunction with specially designed wheel blockers, work to control crash forces while also providing additional safety.
This accolade follows National Highway Traffic Safety Administration testing that awarded F-150 crew cab a five-star overall vehicle score and a five-star rating for driver and passenger for all crash test modes.
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