Number of Safest Vehicles Nearly Triples

Safety-minded drivers now have many more vehicles to choose from.

Thirty-four vehicles received the highest safety rating in the latest crash tests performed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, up from 13 a year ago. Asian car makers had the largest number of top-rated vehicles, with 17. U.S. car makers had six vehicles on the list, while Germany and Sweden had six and five, respectively.

The results, which are due to be released on Nov. 15, 2007, come as auto makers attempt to boost their safety ratings by adding air bags, crumple zones and crash-avoidance electronics -- and as consumers increasingly seek out the latest safety features.

Toyota Motor Corp.'s Tundra is the first pickup truck to make the list, and Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd.'s Subaru Impreza is the first small car since stricter criteria were introduced last year. They join Hyundai Motor Co.'s Entourage minivan, Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz M-Class sport-utility vehicle and Ford Motor Co.'s Volvo XC90 SUV, which were also on last year's list.

To receive the top rating, vehicles have to be available with electronic stability control, or ESC, and get a top score of "good" in front-, side- and rear-impact crash tests. Other ratings in each category include "acceptable," "marginal" and "poor."

Drivers have long been drawn to vehicles that have more horsepower, luxury amenities or conveniences than the competition. But as creature comforts such as heated leather seats, CD changers and navigation systems have proliferated even among budget-priced cars, drivers and car makers have begun to focus on safety features. As a result, attributes such as side-curtain air bags, which cushion occupants in a side collision, and stability control systems, which help drivers avoid accidents, are now among the latest must-haves.

Stephanie Sanford says injuries she suffered from a head-on collision that destroyed her sedan earlier this year persuaded her to look more closely at safety ratings. She recently bought an Acura MDX, an SUV made by Honda Motor Co. that was named a top pick by the Insurance Institute. "I wanted to make sure it had all the stars," says the Denver flight attendant, referring to high scores in crash tests.

Car companies have rushed to make their vehicles more crash-resistant by strengthening their bodies and adding air bags and electronic collision-avoidance systems. Some are paying particular attention to redesigning seats, seat belts and headrests to better protect passengers when the car is hit from behind, which has been a weak spot for many vehicles since the Insurance Institute began rear-impact crash tests in 2004. Indeed, another 23 vehicles would have made the top-rated list if their seats and head restraints hadn't fallen short.

The test results also show that car makers are moving faster than ever to make vehicles more appealing to consumers through safety improvements. Some cars made the list only after their makers quickly made changes to improve their safety ratings. Making such design changes in the past could take several years.

Seats and head restraints in BMW AG's X3 and X5 sport-utility vehicles, and the Honda Accord sedan, Element SUV and Odyssey minivan received "good" ratings for 2008, compared with "marginal" or "poor" ratings a year ago. Volkswagen AG's Audi reworked the seat and head restraints on its midsize A3 to improve the car's rating to "good" from "acceptable."

There are also vehicles that received top ratings this year in categories that weren't represented in last year's top picks, which also helped expand the list. These include two convertibles -- the Volvo C70 and General Motors Corp.'s Saab 9-3 -- in addition to the Tundra and the Impreza.

The auto industry's newfound agility in making last-minute tweaks to vehicles reflects growing consumer awareness of safety, science, marketing and even how cars are made. Consumers increasingly research a vehicle's safety ratings along with quality and reliability records before buying. In response, car makers have recognized the appeal of safety as a marketing tool and often refer to crash-test results in their advertising.

Consumer demand and government regulations will continue to make safety more of a core element in vehicle design, says Rebecca Lindland, an analyst with research firm Global Insight in Lexington, Mass. As fuel-economy standards increase, for example, some cars will become smaller and lighter, necessitating new safety features, she says.

"Federal mandates will drive some of this, but it's also happening because of consumer demand," says Ms. Lindland.

The Insurance Institute, a research group funded by the insurance industry, says its ratings are designed to make it easier for consumers to identify the vehicles that provide the best protection in the most common types of crashes.

The institute's ratings are based on frontal offset crashes at 40 miles per hour -- in which part of the car's front end is hit -- and side impacts at 31 mph. The two-step rear-impact tests include measurements of the head restraints. Vehicles whose head restraints are judged "good" or "acceptable" are tested in a rear impact of 20 mph to a stationary vehicle. The group began frontal-impact testing in 1995, adding side-impact tests in 2003 and rear tests in 2004.