Rear Seat Passengers Are in Danger in These Unsafe SUVs
Where are your children seated when you take the family to dinner or a movie? Many drivers attempt to adhere to safety beliefs and guidelines with children buckled in the vehicle’s rear seat. Unfortunately, this might be more dangerous than the front seat, especially if you’re driving one of the most unsafe SUVs for rear-seat passengers.
How do we know rear-seat passengers are unsafe in some SUVs?
The IIHS recently developed a new aspect to its front, moderate overlap test in which a crash-test dummy is placed in the rear seat. This new IIHS rear-seat crash test uses a dummy the size of a 12-year-old child. Some of the results are alarming.
In general, these new crash test results show that people in the rear seat are 46% more at risk of a fatal injury than those in the front seat. This is certainly troublesome for parents because this is where children are seated.
Should rear passengers benefit from the same safety restraints as front-seat occupants?
Many would think the answer is obviously, “yes” and wonder why rear-seat passengers aren’t offered the same restraints as those in the front. Since first adopting front crash tests, the focus has been on making the front passenger compartment as safe as possible.
Before crumple zones, airbags, and advanced seat belts were developed, rear passengers were much less likely to be injured in a crash. Now the script has flipped, and front passengers are much safer.
Which midsize SUVs earned unacceptable safety ratings?
The IIHS tested 13 midsize SUVs to determine the safety ratings in this new front, moderate overlap test. The results show nine of the 13 received unacceptable scores. Motor1 tells us those nine and their scores are:
- 2023 Chevrolet Traverse – Marginal
- 2023 Toyota Highlander – Marginal
- 2023 Volkswagen Atlas – Marginal
- 2022 Honda Pilot – Poor
- 2023 Hyundai Palisade – Poor
- 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee – Poor
- 2023 Jeep Wrangler Four-Door – Poor
- 2023 Mazda CX-9 – Poor
- 2023 Nissan Murano – Poor
Which compact SUVs earned unacceptable safety ratings?
The compact SUVs didn’t do any better than the midsize models during this new IIHS crash test. The IIHS tested 15 models to determine compact SUV safety ratings, and 12 received unacceptable scores. These 12 are:
- 2023 Audi Q3 – Marginal
- 2023 Nissan Rogue – Marginal
- 2023 Subaru Forester – Marginal
- 2022 Buick Encore – Poor
- 2023 Chevrolet Equinox – Poor
- 2022 Honda CR-V – Poor
- 2022 Honda HR-V – Poor
- 2021 Hyundai Tucson – Poor
- 2021 Jeep Compass – Poor
- 2023 Jeep Renegade – Poor
- 2022 Mazda CX-5 – Poor
- 2023 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross – Poor
Did any SUVs pass this new IIHS rear-seat crash test?
Could a large number of failures mean the test is too strict and impractical? Sometimes that happens, but in this case, four midsize SUVs received safety ratings of “Good” in this new moderate overlap crash test. Additionally, two compact SUVs received a “Good” rating, and one received an “Acceptable” rating. The SUVs that are not unsafe for rear-seat passengers are:
- 2023 Ford Explorer- Good
- 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E – Good
- 2023 Subaru Ascent – Good
- 2023 Tesla Model Y – Good
- 2023 Ford Escape – Good
- 2023 Volvo XC40 – Good
- 2023 Toyota RAV4 – Acceptable
If you want to ensure your children are safe in the rear seat, look for the midsize and compact SUVs with a safety rating of “Good” or “Acceptable.” It won’t be long before more SUVs hit the “Good” and “Acceptable” marks, but the current list is pretty short.
This article was updated on 4/24/2023.
