TOP of the safest cars of 2022
When it comes to choosing a car for a family, you have to consider many factors: dimensions, fuel consumption, body type. However, the key criterion always remains the level of passenger protection and the overall reliability of the vehicle.
Of course, models with high safety ratings usually cost more than less protected counterparts. But this is exactly where you shouldn't save — it's a case where it's better to review your budget, take out a car loan, or even try your luck at online slots for money, rather than risk the well-being of your loved ones.
What determines the safety level of a car
The protection of a car depends on a complex of active and passive safety systems. Passive elements include:
airbags;
deformable elements of the dashboard and steering wheel that reduce the risk of injury to the driver;
inertial seat belts with a stretching function;
child restraint devices — seats and belts;
crumple zones — areas of the front end that deform to absorb impact energy;
trip-resistant glass that shatters into small safe fragments;
head restraints that prevent neck injuries;
a strong body frame that protects people in the cabin, and other solutions.
Passive systems are designed to minimize the consequences after an emergency has already occurred. Active systems, on the other hand, work proactively to avoid a collision: these include brake assistants, cruise control, etc.
Obviously, it is impossible to assess safety only by appearance or technical description. For this purpose, crash tests are conducted, during which various accident scenarios are simulated on dummies to determine what injuries people could sustain.
Such tests reproduce collisions of cars with each other, impacts against obstacles, pedestrian strikes, etc. The results of these tests become the basis for various ratings of the safest cars.
List of the safest cars
There are many institutions in the world that compile such lists — from large industry organizations to specialized publications.
One of the most authoritative is the American Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Every year it publishes its own list of the most protected cars. It includes up to fifty models that have demonstrated the best results in protection tests from various directions. In addition, cars must be equipped with modern accident prevention systems. All these functions must be included in the standard or basic configuration so that the buyer clearly understands what to expect.
The leaders of the rating are distributed across several classes. At the beginning of 2022, the highest IIHS ratings were received by:
Compact models: Honda Insight, Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid, Mazda 3.
Midsize cars: Honda Accord, Kia K5 (2020), Mazda 6, Nissan Altima, Maxima (2020), Subaru Legacy, Outback, Toyota Camry.
Midsize premium cars: Acura TLX, Lexus ES 350, IS, Tesla Model 3, Volvo S60, V60.
Large premium cars: Audi A6, A7, Genesis G70, G90.
Compact crossovers: Mazda CX-3, CX-5, Mazda CX-30 (2020), Subaru Forester, Nissan Rogue, Volvo XC40.
Midsize SUVs: Ford Explorer, Mazda CX-9, Subaru Ascent, Hyundai Palisade, Toyota Highlander.
Midsize premium SUVs: Acura RDX, Hyundai Nexo, Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class, Lexus NX, Cadillac XT6, Volvo XC60, XC90.
Large SUVs: Audi e-tron.
Minivans: Honda Odyssey, Toyota Sienna.
In addition, the institute forms a list of safe cars of the "second level." It includes models that meet high protection standards only in certain available versions.
