September 28, 2018—Two Volvo models are the latest vehicles to qualify for the 2018 TOP SAFETY PICK award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The 2018 S90, a large luxury car, and the 2019 XC90, a midsize luxury SUV, each have good ratings in the driver-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests, as well as standard, superior-rated front crash prevention. The S90 only qualifies for the TOP SAFETY PICK award when equipped with certain headlights.
In addition to good ratings in five crashworthiness tests and an advanced- or superior-rated front crash prevention system, headlights that earn an acceptable or good rating are required for the award. The XC90 is available with either curve-adaptive or static headlights, and both earn an acceptable rating. In the case of the S90, only the static headlights that come with the base trim earn an acceptable rating, while the curve-adaptive ones are marginal.
Neither vehicle has been rated for passenger-side small overlap front protection. The test, the latest crashworthiness evaluation from IIHS, isn't required for TOP SAFETY PICK. An acceptable or good rating is required for TOP SAFETY PICK+, along with good-rated headlights.
With the latest awards, Volvo has a total of five models that qualify for a 2018 award.
