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Crash Tests: How Safe are Small Pickups?

In side-impact crashes, small pickup trucks offer less protection than many cars and sport-utility vehicles -- with some models receiving 'dismal' safety ratings -- according to a recent Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study of side-impact tests involving small pickups.

Of the 2008 model small pickups tested by the IIHS, only the Toyota Tacoma received a rating of "good" for occupant protection in side-impact crashes, which the IIHS calls the "second most common type of fatal motor vehicle crash." In a news release announcing the test results, IIHS President Adrian Lund stated that, while "more people may be looking at small pickups because of rising gas prices . . . , they won't find many that afford state-of-the-art crash protection."

View/Download the Small Pickup Side-Impact Test Results from the IIHS.

• IIHS News Release on Side Impact Tests of Small Pickups
• Consumer Reports: Small Pickup Truck Crash Tests - Some Results are Dismal
• Associated Press: Insurance Tests Raise Some Questions About Pickups
• Motor Vehicle Accidents (FindLaw)
• What is 'Crashworthiness'? (FindLaw)
• Research Vehicle and Equipment Safety (FindLaw)

Full post as published by FindLaw's Common Law on August 05, 2008 (boomark / email).