Ford announced that its 2016 F-150 SuperCab and SuperCrew earned the Top Safety Pick from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
No other large pickup could reach a similar performance in front crash tests performed by the insurance industry. One of the reasons the Ford F-150 could receive this prestigious honor is using military grade, high-strength aluminum alloy in its body.
To help absorb energy from a crash, the pickup truck features aluminum rocker panels on the sides and high-strength steel tubes in the wheel wells. Ford F-150 comes with nylon reinforcements to the door hinges. The pickup truck also takes advantage of new structures especially designed to manage crash forces, including a frame crossmemember and a patented extruded aluminum roof crossmember.
According to Auto123, Ford executive vice president Raj Nair declared that their team designed the new F-150 aiming to make it the best in its class. Nair added that the Top Safety Pick is a proof of Ford's commitment to build the safest, toughest and most capable F-150 ever.
According to results released on Tuesday, April 12, by the IIHS, the 2016 Ford F-150 scored top rating in the new front crash tests, while rival pickups from Toyota, RAM, GMC and Chevrolet didn't perform as well. The 2016 models were evaluated by the institute in a small overlap crash test evaluating both crew cab and extended cab versions of each truck and different body styles.
For other brands, the crash test results varied. For instance, the extended cab versions of the Toyota Tundra, GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado, all performed better than the crew cab versions. However, IIHS said that none of them could get the highest safety rating because all of them failed to protect the crash test dummy's foot and lower leg.
According to the website wkrn.com, Toyota Motor Corp. spokeswoman Cindy Knight said that the company is evaluating the results. According to Knight, the IIHS performs different tests than federal regulators and the Tundra meets or exceeds all federal safety requirements.
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