- The BMW X5, Hyundai Tucson, Lexus NX, and Volvo XC90 are the latest recipients of a Top Safety Pick+ Award from the IIHS
- The all-electric Kia EV9 earned a Top Safety Pick, the next step down
- The IIHS is updating its tests and requirements, including simulating being struck by large SUVs
The 2025 BMW X5, 2024 Hyundai Tucson, 2024 Lexus NX, and 2024 Volvo XC90 have earned the highest Top Safety Pick+ Award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), while the Kia EV9 grabbed the next-step-down Top Safety Pick.
The U.S.-based non-profit association recently made it tougher to earn the top awards with its updated crash tests. The IIHS is also tightening up its standards for headlights and emergency front braking systems.
The X5 (which was tested as a 2024 but the award also applies to the 2025), Tucson, and XC90 all scored the highest “Good” in the small front overlap crash test; in the updated side crash, which now better simulates being struck by a large SUV; and in the original and updated moderate front overlap tests. The updated moderate overlap test now assesses potential injury to a rear-seat passenger as well as to those in the front.
The Lexus NX also scored “Good” in the small overlap, side crash, and original moderate overlap, but got the next-step-down “Acceptable” in the updated front moderate overlap — which is still enough for the top Pick+ trophy right now. The IIHS gradually rolls its updated test results into its award requirements.
The electric Kia EV9 passed the small overlap, updated side test and original moderate overlap front with the top “Good” scores, but missed qualifying for the Pick+ because it hasn’t yet been crashed in the updated moderate overlap. In addition to crash tests, the IIHS also rates each vehicle’s headlight performance, and Top Safety vehicles must have headlights rated “Good” or “Acceptable” across all trim levels. The IIHS notes Kia previously earned a “Poor” rating for the headlights on some of the EV9’s trims, and has since adjusted them to reduce the glare that resulted in the rating. For that reason, the Top Safety Pick Award doesn’t apply to vehicles built prior to February 2024, before the problem was resolved.
Fixing that issue meant the EV9 moved up to a “Good” rating for its lights, but all of the Top Safety Pick+ winners noted here only reached “Acceptable” for their lights.
In addition to crashes and headlights, the IIHS also rates the effectiveness of emergency front braking systems in detecting vehicles and pedestrians. These tests are also in the process of being updated — it’s primarily about pedestrians now — and those new tests rolled into the requirements for awards. The pedestrian detection was previously broken down into daytime and nighttime performance, but is now tested in both conditions for a single rating.
The BMW X5, Hyundai Tucson, Kia EV9 and Lexus NX all earned the highest “Good” for pedestrian detection, while the Volvo XC90 earned “Acceptable.” The Tucson was the only one tested for vehicle detection, where it earned “Marginal.”
The IIHS also tests how easy it is to use the child seat tether anchors, known as LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) in the U.S., and LUAS (Lower Universal Anchorage System) in Canada, although the test isn’t a requirement for a Top Safety Pick award. The Lexus NX earned the highest “Good+” rating. The BMW X5 and Kia eV9 earned “Good,” while the Hyundai Tucson and Volvo XC90 rated “Acceptable.”
Sign up for our newsletter Blind-Spot Monitor and follow our social channels on X, Tiktok and LinkedIn to stay up to date on the latest automotive news, reviews, car culture, and vehicle shopping advice.