The Tesla Model S received only an "acceptable" rating from IIHS on its small overlap frontal crash test, a notch below the top rating of "good," with slack in the seat belt allowing a crash test dummy’s head to hit the steering wheel despite the cushioning of the airbag. While its crash tests are best known, IIHS has also begun evaluating features like driver assist systems and headlight performance. In 2012, (the same year the Model S was introduced) IIHS introduced the small offset, rigid barrier (SORB) test. In 2015, Ford had different crash protection configurations on the three body-styles of the then-new F-150 pickup. In recent years, manufacturers have increasingly accounted for the IIHS tests in designing vehicles even though they don’t legally have to.

Source: Forbes July 06, 2017 14:16 UTC