The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) reports that SUVs showed modest
improvement in rear-crash protection, but more than half the 87 light trucks tested fell
short of optimum, and pickups fared the worst. In the latest evaluation, seat/head
restraint combinations in 17 of 59 SUV models were rated good and five were acceptable.
The
remaining 37 were marginal or poor. In pickups, one model posted a “good” score, while five
were acceptable. The remaining 11 were marginal or poor. The redesigned 2007 Tundra from
Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp. was the lone pickup that received a good rating. The Institute
said that Honda’s CR-V received a good rating this year compared to a poor score in 2006.
