The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has announced the winners of its 2023 top safety awards and every tested Mazda vehicle made the list. These vehicles include the Mazda3 Sedan, Mazda3 Hatchback, CX-30, CX-5, CX-50 and CX-9.
New for the 2023 program year, IIHS strengthened the requirements for its TOP SAFETY PICK and TOP SAFETY PICK+ awards, demanding better side crash protection, improved pedestrian crash prevention systems and superior headlight performance.
IIHS notes the biggest change to the criteria for both awards is the replacement of the original IIHS side crash test with the updated evaluation launched in 2021. The updated test involves 82 percent more energy than the original test. Vehicles must earn an Acceptable or Good rating in this tougher test to qualify for TOP SAFETY PICK. The Mazda CX-5, CX-9, and Mazda3 all stood out with top, Good ratings in this test.
