IIHS reveals safety ratings for seven electric vehicles

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has released new safety ratings for seven electric vehicles, highlighting differences in crash test performance and passenger protection. The BMW i4, Chevrolet Blazer EV, Tesla Cybertruck, and Volkswagen ID.Buzz received good ratings in the moderate overlap front test. The Tesla Model 3 was rated acceptable. Notably, the Cybertruck's rating applies to models built after April 2025 due to structural changes.

Rear passenger protection varied among the vehicles. While all tested models provided strong driver protection, the Ford F-150 Lightning and Nissan Ariya fell short in safeguarding rear passengers. In the Ariya, restraint systems controlled dummy motion well, but injury metrics indicated a high risk of chest injuries. The F-150 Lightning showed potential risks of chest, head, or neck injuries for rear passengers.

The IIHS also evaluated pedestrian crash prevention systems and headlights. The i4, Lightning, Cybertruck, and Model 3 earned good ratings for pedestrian crash prevention. However, none of the vehicles achieved good headlight ratings; most were rated acceptable except for the i4 and Cybertruck with marginal or poor ratings.

For IIHS's Top Safety Pick awards, only the Ariya and Blazer underwent all necessary tests but did not meet criteria due to their respective ratings in certain crash tests. Good performance in small overlap and side crash tests is essential for these awards.

Further details on vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention and other safety features are available on the IIHS website.

Information from this article can be found here.