The Safest Small Pickup Trucks
According to a recent study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety on July 24th, small pickups are not providing as much protection in side-crashes as many new cars and sport utility vehicles. The Toyota Tacoma was the only one of five small pickup trucks, all 2008 models, to earn the highest rating of good for occupant protection in recent side crash tests conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The Dodge Dakota, Ford Ranger, and Nissan Frontier are rated marginal, while the Chevrolet Colorado is rated poor in the side test, which simulates a side impact from an SUV or another pickup.
"More people may be looking at small pickups because of rising gas prices," said Institute President Adrian Lund. "Unfortunately, they won't find many that afford state-of-the-art crash protection. Most earn dismal ratings for protecting people in side-crashes, and all but the Tacoma and Frontier lack electronic stability control, which is a key feature in preventing crashes. Until they improve, most small pickups aren't good choices for people looking for safe transportation".
Tacoma earned the only “good” rating in the side-test. The experts at ChoiceAutoInsurance.com want to emphasize the importance of a good performance in side-tests because side-impacts are the second most common type of fatal crash, killing nearly 9,000 occupants in 2006. The Tacoma's side airbags did a good job of reducing forces on the crash test driver dummy and the passenger dummy in the back seat in the Institute's test. The curtain-style airbags that deployed from the roof above the side windows protected the dummies' heads from being struck by any hard structures and the risk of significant injury to the head/neck and chest was low. Measures recorded on the driver dummy indicate a fracture of the pelvis would be possible in a real-world crash of this severity. The Tacoma's structure held up reasonably well, preventing major intrusion into the occupant compartment.
The Tacoma also is rated “good” for frontal crash protection, but its seat/head restraints earn the second lowest rating of marginal for protection against whiplash in rear-end crashes, the Institute reported. If Toyota improves the Tacoma's rear crash rating, this manufacturer would have the only two pickup models to earn the Institute's Top Safety Pick Award so far. The other is Toyota's Tundra, a large pickup truck.
According to the Institute, small pickup trucks have the highest driver death rates of any vehicles on the road, including mini-cars like the SmartCar and Mini Cooper. In 2006 small pickups experienced 116 driver deaths per million registered vehicles one to three years old. That compares with 106 for mini-cars, 99 for small cars, and 42 for small SUVs. Part of the reason is that small pickup trucks are more likely than other passenger vehicles to be involved in single-vehicle crashes, especially rollovers.
The worst performer in the Institute's tests was the Chevrolet Colorado, which is also sold as the GMC Canyon. This model was the only one to earn the lowest rating of “poor” in the Institute's side test. The top of the Institute’s moving barrier hit the crash test driver dummy’s head during the impact. Plus the side structure of the Colorado allowed a lot more intrusion into the occupant compartment than the other pickups.
The Institute's side evaluations are based on performance in a crash test, in which a barrier moving at 31 mph strikes the side of a vehicle. The barrier represents the front end of a pickup or SUV. Ratings reflect injury measures recorded on two instrumented SID-IIs dummies, assessment of head protection countermeasures, and the vehicle's structural performance during the impact.
ChoiceAutoInsurance.com not only hopes to keep you safe by providing insurance industry updates, but we also hope to save you money with cheap car insurance through multiple online auto insurance quotes from leading companies.
