IIHS: Most small SUVs have lousy, inadequate headlights
Most headlights on small SUVs aren’t bright enough, one of the nation’s most widely watched independent auto safety testing agencies concludes in a report issued Tuesday.
Overall, about two-thirds of the headlights on 21 small crossover SUV models tested rated poor, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found. The rest were marginal or acceptable. None were rated good.
Worst of all were the headlights in Honda’s smallest SUV, the 2016 HR-V. It didn’t matter if it was curves or straightaways, “The illumination provided by HR-V’s halogen low beams and high beams is inadequate,” IIHS writes.
Reached for comment, Honda’s Chris Martin said, “All Honda and Acura models meet or exceed U.S. government standards for headlight performance, but the new, rigorous headlight testing done by the IIHS will present a new challenge to all automakers seeking to earn the institute’s evolving top rating in 2017.”
The best were in the similarly sized Mazda CX-3 Grand Touring — LED headlights that can aim themselves in the direction of travel with an optional feature that switches the high beams on or off depending on when the car senses oncoming traffic.
Headlights must meet government standards, but those are usually based on laboratory, rather than real-world, tests, the agency says. “Manufacturers aren’t paying enough attention to the actual on-road performance of this basic equipment,” IIHS Senior Research Engineer Matthew Brumbelow says.
Similar tests on midsize cars found their headlights are pretty lousy as well. As a result, IIHS says it’s going to require headlights be rated acceptable or good in order to qualify for its Top Safety Pick Plus ranking next year, which automakers typically hustle to try to achieve. Here are the findings:
Acceptable: 2017 Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Hyundai Tucson, Mazda CX-3
Marginal: BMW X1, Mazda CX-5, Mitsubishi Outlander, Toyota RAV4, Volkswagen Tiguan
Poor: Audi Q3, Buick Encore, Chevrolet Trax, Fiat 500X, Honda HR-V, Jeep Patriot, Jeep Renegade, Jeep Wrangler, Mitsubishi Outlander Sport, Nissan Rogue, Subaru Forester, 2017 Kia Sportage