5 Subarus, 5 Top Safety Picks

Japanese carmaker Subaru managed a not-so-easy task, as it has a car in every category of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's Top Safety Pick. The carmaker's Legacy (Liberty), Outback, Forester, Impreza and Tribeca have passed with flying colors the test they were subjected to by the IIHS, including the new rollover test.

Subaru says the feat is owed largely to the ring-shaped reinforcement frame body structure that disperses collision energy around and away from occupants. Of course, the frontal air bag system (SRS), driver and front passenger seat-mounted side-impact air bags, and standard side curtain air bags also helped the carmaker earning the Picks.

Having five models, one in each category, selected as a Top Safety Pick, makes the carmaker a unique sight among those whose cars got tested. In addition to the Top Safety Picks, the IIHS also designated the Legacy one of only two cars which received an "acceptable" rating, instead of the all-present "good" one.

"The Legacy's performance shows what automakers can do when they pay attention to damage prevention in the low-speed crashes that happen every day," Joe Nolan, IIHS vice president added.

"The Legacy leapfrogs the competition for bumper protection. These common sense bumper changes will help keep repair costs down in low-speed crashes."

The same Legacy managed to be one of five cars to receive an acceptable rating for its bumpers. It is also the first car the tested by the IIHS that limits damage to the bumper system in all four tests, and the first car with all four damage estimates under $1,000 USD.