List of 38 safest cars of 2017 is released

Toyota, Lexus lead the way with nine picks at the top, with Honda, Acura in second

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has released its list of Top Safety Picks for 2017.

This year, IIHS made it more difficult to earn the Top Safety Pick+ award by adding new headlight evaluations that were launched in 2016. A total of 44 vehicles earned a Top Safety Pick rating, while 38 vehicles earned the “plus” accolade.

For both awards, vehicles must earn “good” ratings in the institute’s small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests, as well as an advanced or superior rating for front crash prevention with standard or optional autobrake. Headlights are factored in only for the top award.

Toyota and Lexus led the way this year with nine Top Safety Pick+ winners, while Honda and Acura combined for five Top Safety Pick+ awards.

Among all the 2017 models tested, only seven vehicles are available with good-rated headlights: Chevrolet Volt, Honda Ridgeline, Hyundai Elantra, Hyundai Santa Fe, Subaru Legacy, Toyota Prius v and Volvo XC60.

“The field of contenders is smaller this year, because so few vehicles have headlights that do their job well, but it’s not as small as we expected when we decided to raise the bar for the awards,” IIHS president Adrian Lund said. “Manufacturers are focusing on improving this basic safety equipment, and we’re confident that the winners’ list will grow as the year progresses.”

Below are this year’s Top Safety Pick+ award winners:

Small Cars

Chevrolet Volt

Hyundai Elantra (sedan only, built after March 2016)

Mazda3

Toyota Corolla

Toyota Prius (built after August 2016)

Mid-size Cars

Honda Accord 4-door

Mazda6

Nissan Altima

Nissan Maxima

Subaru Legacy

Subaru Outback

Toyota Camry

Toyota Prius v

Volkswagen Jetta

Mid-size Luxury Cars

Audi A4

Lexus ES350

Volvo S60

Volvo V60

Large Luxury Cars

Genesis G80

Genesis G90

Lexus RC

Small SUVs

Mazda CX-3

Mitsubishi Outlander

Nissan Rogue

Subaru Forester (built after October 2018)

Toyota RAV4

Mid-size SUVs

Honda Pilot

Hyundai Santa Fe XL (built after March 2016)

Mid-size Luxury SUVs

Acura MDX

Acura RDX

Audi Q5

Buick Envision

Lexus NX

Lexus RX

Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class

Volvo XC60

Minivan Chrysler Pacifica (built after August 2016)

Pickups Honda Ridgeline

HONDA The 2017 Honda Ridgeline was named the top safety choice for pickups on the IIHS list.

HYUNDAI For small cars, the Hyundai Elantra made the grade.

MAZDA The 2017 Mazda CX-3 earned high points in the small SUV category.