One of the cussed myths within the automotive world is that purchasing a big SUV will maintain you safer. Whereas it may be true that bigger, heavier autos do extra harm to others on the highway, the Insurance coverage Institute for Freeway Security’s newest findings present that not all giant SUVs include extra security assurances.
The IIHS examined three giant SUVs: The 2023-2024 Jeep Wagoneer, the 2023-2024 Chevrolet Tahoe, and the 2023-2024 Ford Expedition. The Wagoneer was the one of the three to earn a High Security Choose award, but it surely missed out on the “plus” designation resulting from failing to adequately shield rear-seat passengers.
IIHS President David Harkey stated, “The large mass of those giant SUVs gives some extra safety in crashes with smaller autos, although that additionally means they current extra hazard to different highway customers. The flip aspect of their giant dimension is that there’s a lot extra power to handle after they crash into a hard and fast impediment like a tree or bridge abutment or the barrier we use in our entrance crash exams.”
The Chevy Tahoe did an “satisfactory” job at defending the driving force within the driver-side crash check, however the passenger-side check noticed vital intrusion into the footwell, which created a excessive harm danger to the proper foot and left leg. The Expedition fared worse in each exams, with its steering wheel partially detaching from the instrument panel throughout the driver-side check and footwell intrusion on the passenger aspect. Its A-pillar additionally indifferent from the rocker panel in each exams.
As a result of they’re so closely used as household haulers, the IIHS positioned a further dummy within the second row. All three SUVs confirmed vital dangers to second-row passengers, with excessive seatbelt forces presenting threats of chest accidents. The Expedition was the one one with second-row seatbelt pretensioners that assist forestall extra passenger physique motion, however its second-row side-curtain airbags didn’t deploy.
