A few more vehicles have been added to the long list of Top Safety Pick winners. One of those winners includes the Lincoln MKT->ke3002, which is about the only thing the SUV has going for it at the moment. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety was impressed with the roof strength that the MKT showed during the rollover test.
The MKT wasn’t the only Ford to get a Top Safety Pick award. In fact, Ford got five of those awards, though one was to the now extinct Mercury Milan->ke1705. The other winners include the Flex->ke2467, Fusion->ke433, and the Lincoln MKZ->ke456.
Audi and Volkswagen were given the award as well. The 2010 Audi A4->ke1087 and the Q5->ke1666 were handed Top Safety Picks, as well as the Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen. I bet most people didn’t know the Jetta came in a wagon, as I have yet to see one.
Finally, the 2010 Hyundai Tucson->ke3245 won the Top Safety Pick award.
Hit the jump for the press release.
Audi, Ford, Hyundai, and Volkswagen models earn the 2010 TOP SAFETY PICK award
Arlington, VA -- Based on new rollover test results the 2010 Audi A4 and Q5, Ford Flex and Fusion (twins Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ), Hyundai Tucson, Lincoln MKT, and Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen earn the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's TOP SAFETY PICK award.
Each vehicle earns the highest rating of good for roof strength in rollover crashes. To measure roof strength, a metal plate is pushed against one corner of a vehicle's roof at a constant speed. The maximum force sustained by the roof before 5 inches of crush is compared to the vehicle's weight to find the strength-to-weight ratio. This is a good assessment of vehicle structural protection in rollover crashes. Good rated vehicles have roofs that can withstand a force equal to at least 4 times the vehicle's weight. For comparison, the current federal standard is 1.5 times weight.
Top Safety Pick recognizes the vehicles that earn the highest rating of good for front, side, rollover, and rear crash protection, and that have electronic stability control, which is standard on all of these models. Earlier this year Ford made changes to the roof structures of the Flex, Fusion, and MKT. The award applies to Flex models built after January 2010, Fusions built after April 2010, MKTs built after March 2010.