Rollover and Crash Test Results

Federal safety investigators at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have completed the new model year rollover ratings and crash test results for cars, vans, SUV’s and pickup trucks. The annual tests are designed to determine crash worthiness and rollover safety.
 
Each year Nhtsa crashes new vehicles under controlled tests in their research facilities and grades the results with one to five stars. One star is a dismal rating while five stars indicates top safety performance in a category.
 
Tested categories include: Front Driver, Front Passenger, Rear Driver Side Passenger, Rear Passenger Side Passenger, 2 Wheel Drive Rollover Rating, and 4 Wheel Drive Rollover Rating.
 

Rollovers have a higher incidence of fatalities so the rollover rating of a vehicle can be an important guide to the vehicle’s safety capability. Federal safety data in 2008 showed that 95% of single vehicle rollovers occur when a vehicle leaves the road and slides sideways, digging its tires into soil or striking an object like a curb or guardrail, causing the vehicle to flip over. Rollovers account for about one third of all deaths that occur in crashes.

The Nhtsa results should appear on new car window stickers but you can read them, and the results for model years going back to 1990, by clicking here.