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IIHS Finds Toyota Sienna Unsafe In Passenger-Side Overlap Crash Test

Over in the United States, the minivan is still going strong despite the invasion of the crossover and sport utility vehicle. And as it happens, three people carriers are more equal than the rest. It’s these cars the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety decided to test this time around, and the Toyota Sienna is the worst offender of them all.
IIHS Finds Toyota Sienna Unsafe In Passenger-Side Overlap Crash Test 6 photos
Photo: screenshot from YouTube
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“The intruding structure crumpled around the test dummy's legs,” explains David Zuby, chief research officer at the IIHS. “A real right front passenger would sustain possible injuries to the right hip and lower leg in a crash of this severity.” As if this wasn’t shameful enough for Toyota, there is a precedence.

Back in 2015, Toyota modified the safety structure of the Sienna to improve driver-side protection. But the Japanese automaker didn’t enhance the passenger side of the vehicle, thus explaining the 20-inch intrusion into the lower passenger compartment. At the dashboard’s level, the institute measured no less than 16 inches of intrusion.

The “marginal” rating in this test and the “poor” rating for the structure don’t help the Sienna at all, with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety preferring the Honda Odyssey and Chrysler Pacifica. The American contender received a “marginal” rating for structure and an “acceptable” overall while the Odyssey’s only downside is the “acceptable” rating received for structure.

If the headlights were better, both the Chrysler and Honda would’ve got Top Safety Pick+ from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The Toyota, meanwhile, takes home nothing because it doesn’t hold a candle to its competitors as far as passenger protection is concerned.

To make matters worse, the Sienna is the most expensive of the three minivans, starting at $31,115. The Odyssey comes second at $30,090 and the Pacifica is the most affordable at $26,995. Those in the market for the most miles per gallon from their minivan should take up Chrysler’s offer, with the Pacifica (plug-in) Hybrid costing $39,995 before the $7,500 tax credit.

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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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