GREENSBORO, N.C. — Did you see the news? Ten cars got crunched when they crashed one after another on I-73 in an early morning accident in Asheboro. Highway Patrol troopers say a tractor-trailer making a lane change hit a car in another lane and that started it. Of the 10-cars, only one person was injured.
When something like this happens, I always think to myself, ‘ Would my car have protected me?’.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety performs a number of crash tests to determine if a car is safe.
This year a record 90 new vehicles earned a Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick Plus award, up from 64 last year. More vehicles made the grade because of auto-braking systems and better headlights.
"By casting more light down the road for the driver and eliminating that glare for the oncoming drivers,” said David Harkey, President, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Hyundai Motor Group, which includes Genesis and KIA earned 17 awards, the most of any automaker.
Mitsubishi was the only manufacturer that did not receive a single award.
General Motors earned just two for the Cadillac XT6 and Chevy Equinox.
No pickups won an award last year, but this year, the Ram 1500 Crew Cab did.
This is from their site: Vehicles that perform best in our evaluations qualify for TOP SAFETY PICK, which has been awarded since the 2006 model year, or TOP SAFETY PICK+, which was inaugurated in 2013.
These awards identify the best vehicle choices for safety within size categories during a given year. Larger, heavier vehicles generally afford more protection than smaller, lighter ones. Thus, a small car that qualifies for an award might not protect its occupants as well as a bigger vehicle that doesn't earn the award.