IIHS Crash Tests: The Toyota Prius Is Officially Safer Than The Ford Bronco

Miami Herald

a day ago

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has released the results of its latest crash tests, and while most models achieved the organization's 2025 Top Safety Pick+ award - indicating the highest possible safety standards - Ford won't be pleased with the outcomes for two of its best SUVs.
The Bronco and Bronco Sport SUVs both missed out on a Top Safety Pick+ award following new ratings, while at least three much smaller cars achieved better safety scores. While this does not mean that the SUVs are unsafe, they each failed to protect occupants according to the agency's highest standards. Here, we'll look at exactly where the Bronco and Bronco Sport fell short.
To qualify for the Top Safety Pick award, a vehicle has to achieve the following in IIHS crash tests:
Good ratings for the small overlap front and update side testsAcceptable or Good ratings in the pedestrian front crash prevention testAcceptable or Good ratings for headlights, applicable to all trimsAcceptable rating for the updated moderate overlap front test
Furthermore, the Top Safety Pick+ award is only achievable if a Good rating for the updated moderate overlap front test is received.
The IIHS regularly updates its testing procedures with tougher tests, so a vehicle that qualified for a Top Safety Pick+ award a few years ago may not get one now.
The Bronco may look like a safe place to be in a crash, given its tall stance and beefy bodywork, but it didn't do enough to ace its crash tests. Marginal ratings for the moderate overlap, pedestrian front crash prevention, and headlight tests held the SUV back. For the moderate overlap test, the IIHS noted a higher risk of chest injuries when the rear crash dummy was assessed. Then again, even minivans were found to do an inadequate job of protecting second-row passengers, and those are dedicated family movers.
The Bronco still received Good ratings for the small overlap front, updated side, and seat belt reminder tests, though. Its vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention system got an Acceptable score, as did the ease of using the LATCH system. It must be noted that the LATCH system, seat belt reminder, and vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention scores are not factored into the award criteria.
Overall, the Bronco could be improved, but previous tests show it's still safer than its Jeep Wrangler rival.
Thanks to LED projector headlights instead of the Bronco's LED reflector headlights, the Bronco Sport gets off to a better start than its bigger sibling, with a Good rating for its headlights. The Bronco Sport's pedestrian crash prevention system also performed better, with a Good rating.
In the updated moderate overlap front test, the Bronco Sport got the same Marginal score as the Bronco. The post-crash analysis showed that the rear dummy's lap belt slid up onto its abdomen, which poses a higher risk of internal injuries. This is in addition to elevated chest, neck, and head injuries for rear-seat passengers. The Acceptable rating in the side test was due to a risk of injury to the driver's pelvis.
Interestingly, smaller cars like the Toyota Prius, Hyundai Elantra, and Kia K4 achieved better ratings than the Ford SUVs, proving that vehicle size has nothing to do with occupant protection. Take the Prius, for example. Besides an Acceptable rating for its headlights, it received a Good score in every crash test.
However, since no two accidents are exactly the same, the Bronco and Bronco Sport still have every chance of adequately protecting occupants in a crash. Both come with a decent roster of passive and active safety features. These IIHS tests do, however, show that there is some room for improvement in this area for the Ford twins.
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