Mercedes Just Announced a Host of Updates to Popular SUV Models
Electrified power and a range of new tech features headline the updates for 2027.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) crash-test scores are among the most important benchmarks in the automotive industry. Every year, the ratings organization releases its findings on new cars, assigning scores across several categories, including headlights, front crash protection, child seat anchors, and more. Of course, technology has changed, and vehicles are different now than they were, even just a few years ago. To keep up with that evolution, the IIHS has updated its testing methodology, tightening the rules to achieve its Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick + awards. Here’s how the testing process changed earlier this year and which vehicles made the cut.
2026 IIHS Testing Updates
In January 2026, the IIHS launched a new seat and head restraint evaluation as part of its overall testing process. The new test is aimed at the parts of vehicle interiors that protect against neck injuries during rear-end crashes. IIHS president David Harkey said, “Neck sprains and strains are the most frequently reported injuries in U.S. auto insurance claims. This new test challenges automakers to further improve their seats and head restraints to provide better protection in the rear impacts that typically cause these injuries.”
While the industry often adapts its safety tech to improve scores on these sorts of tests, many models don’t make the cut in early evaluations. Only four of the 18 small SUVs the IIHS tested earned a Good rating, including the Audi Q3, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Subaru Forester, and Toyota RAV4. Nine others earned acceptable ratings, such as the Buick Encore GX, Honda CR-V, and Kia Sportage, but several more earned Marginal or Poor scores.
It’s important to note that most of the vehicles tested were 2025 models, with the CR-V being the only 2024 in the evaluation. That said, many of the ratings also cover 2026 model-year vehicles.
The IIHS has also changed its EV ratings, testing for advanced driver-assistance technologies, and other tests over the past year, making it harder for vehicles to achieve top ratings. A new requirement for speed-limiting technologies and other systems that detect and help limit risky behaviors behind the wheel will become part of the Top Safety Pick + criteria in 2027.
Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick + award winners are listed below. As it does every year, this list will continue to grow and evolve as new models reach the market and others receive updates.
To earn a Top Safety Pick + award, a vehicle must achieve Good scores in all categories except headlights and front crash prevention, where an Acceptable score is allowed. Top Safety Pick winners don’t have to score in the vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention tests, but they must earn an Acceptable score in pedestrian front crash prevention and headlights, and they must achieve Good scores in three crash-test categories.
The list of Top Safety Pick award winners would take up a lot more space than anyone would be willing to read, but the important thing to note here is that no minivans made the cut for either list, and the Toyota Tundra was the only other large pickup to earn an award, picking up a Top Safety Pick designation for the 2026 model year.
Missing an IIHS award doesn’t mean a vehicle is unsafe or that it should be avoided, but it does give buyers something to think about, especially when it comes to people shopping for a family vehicle. IIHS President David Harkey said the exclusions were mostly due to minivans’ difficulty protecting rear-seat passengers.
The new head protection updates are part of that, but the organization also scores vehicles on side-crash protection and other areas. Interestingly, the IIHS noted a lack of rear-seat protection in minivans back in 2023, saying that second-row restraints showed excessive seatbelt force and posed a risk of head and neck injuries. Even with that challenge, the back seat remains the safest place for children, and some of the issues that arose during testing did not apply to kids in safety seats.
