In the past few years, small pickup trucks made a comeback in the United States of America, where the F-Series is king of the hill since times immemorial. And as demand keeps on rising for this particular kind of workhorse, automakers lend an ear to what the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has to say when it comes down to driver and passenger safety in a crash situation.
As per the latest round of testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found out that four out of eight small pickups are worthy of the “good” rating in all crashworthiness evaluations. The lack of automatic emergency braking, as well as the “poor” headlight performance, rendered the four winners short of claiming the organization’s Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ accolades.
"This group of small pickups performed better in the small overlap front test than many of their larger pickup cousins," said David Zuby, executive vice president and chief research officer. "The exception was the Nissan Frontier, which hasn't had a structural redesign since the 2005 model year," he added.
Speaking of crashworthiness, the safest trucks in this particular segment are the Toyota Tacoma access cab and double cab, as well as the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon crew cab. As an extended cab, the IIHS rated the General Motors workhorses an overall “acceptable” because dummy measures suggest poor protection for the lower leg in the small overlap test.
As for the biggest offender, the 2017 Nissan Frontier king cab is arguably the least safe small pickup truck money can buy. Rated “poor” for lower leg protection and structural rigidity, the Frontier scores an overall “marginal.” To the Frontier’s defense, it’s the least expensive truck on the list, with the suggested retail price starting at $18,390. By comparison, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety sweetheart 2017 Toyota Tacoma kicks off at $24,575.
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. Full profile
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