The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) recently released its latest safety ratings, with only two out of 16 tested models earning top awards. Notably, the 2026 Toyota Land Cruiser, an icon of durable SUVs, failed to meet the highest safety criteria. This outcome surprised evaluators, who had expected the SUV to achieve a perfect score.
Land Cruiser's safety scores
The 2026 Land Cruiser performed well in the small overlap front and side crash tests, earning a 'Good' rating, the highest possible. The small overlap front test simulates a collision where the vehicle's front corner impacts another vehicle or object. The side crash test simulates a T-bone collision. In both evaluations, the Toyota model showed no increased risk of injury for drivers or passengers.
However, the moderate overlap front test presented a different outcome. This test simulates an off-center collision between two oncoming vehicles at speeds under 64 km/h. Since 2022, the IIHS has upgraded this test's standards, adding dummies to the rear seats to evaluate rear passenger protection.
Here, the rear seat assessment only achieved an 'Average' rating. IIHS experts highlighted several issues:
Injury risk: Rear passengers faced a higher risk of injuries to the head, neck, and chest. The driver had a risk of leg and foot injuries.
Seatbelts: Dummies simulating rear passengers showed the seatbelt tending to move from the pelvic area to the abdomen, reducing protection and increasing the risk of internal injuries.
Distance: The heads of the rear seat dummies moved too close to the front seatbacks, eliminating the necessary safe distance.
This outcome disqualified the 2026 Land Cruiser from the IIHS safety award. Under new regulations, a vehicle must achieve a 'Good' rating in all three primary crash tests to qualify.
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The 2026 Land Cruiser received only an average score in the IIHS safety test in the US. *Photo: Toyota* |
A general trend or a Toyota-specific challenge?
The Land Cruiser is not the only Toyota model facing challenges in the new test. Models like the Highlander, Sienna, and 4Runner (which share the Land Cruiser's platform) also received similar 'Average' ratings. Another of the company's SUVs, the Lexus RX, was even rated 'Poor'. Within the mid-size SUV segment, the Land Cruiser is among the few vehicles with a low rating.
However, Toyota is not alone. The Honda CR-V, a popular model in the US, also previously received a 'Poor' rating in this category.
While the Land Cruiser remains a safe vehicle overall, the gap in rear passenger safety is an area Toyota needs to address promptly, according to Autoblog. Resolving this would elevate the model's safety to a level comparable with the Jeep Wrangler and Honda Passport.
Minh Vu (according to Autoblog)
