5 Small SUVs Get “Good” IIHS Rating, Ford Escape Flunks Test

Five of seven small SUV/crossovers have received a “good” rating in the latest round of demanding crash tests by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Models earning the institute’s highest “good” rating are the BMX X1, Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain, Jeep Compass and Mitsubishi Outlander.

IIHS says a sixth vehicle, Mitsubishi Motors Corp.’s Outland Sport was deemed “marginal” in the institute’s difficult small overlap front crash. The performance of Ford Motor Co.’s Escape SUV ranked “poor.”

The institute’s test smashes a vehicle into a barrier at 40 mph in such a way that only 25% of the front corner of the vehicle absorbs the entire impact. IIHS now performs two identical tests, one for the driver’s side and one for the passenger’s side. The crashes are intended to show a vehicle’s performance when it clips an oncoming car or strikes a tree or pole.

IIHS says the Escape “struggled” with the crash test. The vehicle’s side curtain airbags failed to deploy. The upper end of the vehicle’s A pillar intruded 10 inches into the passenger compartment, and the passenger side door sill moved 4 inches into the cabin.

IIHS says the Escape “struggled” with the crash test. The vehicle’s side curtain airbags failed to deploy. The upper end of the vehicle’s A pillar intruded 10 inches into the passenger compartment, and the passenger side door sill moved 4 inches into the cabin.