The Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has named the Tesla Model 3 a Top Safety Pick+ award winner for 2020.
To qualify for a 2020 Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ award, vehicles must have good ratings in each of the institute’s six crashworthiness evaluations. They must also have good or acceptable headlights and available front crash prevention that earns advanced or superior ratings in both vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian evaluations.
The “plus” is awarded to models that come exclusively with good or acceptable headlights, making it easier for consumers to find properly equipped vehicles. Of the 64 award winners, 23 qualified for a “plus” award. The Model 3 also received a Top Safety Pick+ award in 2019.
“The headlight ratings that have been part of our awards criteria in recent years have pushed automakers to pay more attention to this essential equipment,” IIHS President David Harkey said in a release. “However, finding vehicles with the right headlights can be a challenge for consumers. We wanted to reward automakers that have removed this obstacle.”
The Top Safety Pick award also requires a vehicle to earn good ratings in the driver-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests, as well as a good or acceptable rating in the passenger-side small overlap test. It also needs an available front crash prevention system.