2023 Honda HR-V Makes Safety Revival, Named IIHS Top Safety Pick Plus
The Honda HR-V received a full redesign for 2023 that included a series of structural and safety improvements. That appears to have paid off: Honda’s smallest SUV has secured the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety’s biggest award, Top Safety Pick Plus. This marks the first time the HR-V has received the agency’s highest designation and only the second time it qualified for any IIHS award (the 2019 and 2020 HR-Vs earned the lesser Top Safety Pick).
Related: 2023 Honda HR-V Grows in Size, Shrinks in Quirkiness
In order to be named an IIHS Top Safety Pick Plus, a vehicle must earn good ratings across six crash test categories: driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests. Additionally, the vehicle must secure an advanced or superior rating for its front crash prevention system in the vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian evaluations. Finally, it must have acceptable- or good-rated headlights across all trims. (A Top Safety Pick needs to offer just one set of headlights with an acceptable or good rating.)
Safety Upgrades Pay Off
The outgoing 2022 HR-V’s headlights failed to make the grade, and the SUV received a poor score in the agency’s updated side impact test.
The 2023 HR-V saw significant improvements over its predecessor, scoring good ratings across all crash tests. Honda says the 2023 HR-V received structural improvements as part of its Advanced Compatibility Engineering body structure, and the SUV’s new front airbag technology better protects occupants in a crash. The headlights, which caused it to miss out on a 2022 award, now earn an acceptable rating across all trims — LED headlights with high-beam assist are standard across the board.
Driver-Assist Tech Seals the Deal
The new HR-V also prevailed in the safety tech category, earning a superior rating for its front crash prevention system in both the vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian evaluations. The Honda Sensing driver-assist suite comes standard on all trims and bundles forward collision warning with pedestrian detection and brake assist, road departure mitigation, adaptive cruise control, lane departure prevention and lane departure steering assist. New standard features for 2023 include a front wide-view camera, traffic jam assist and traffic sign recognition.
Stablemates and Rivals
The 2023 HR-V joins six other Honda vehicles as a 2022 IIHS Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick Plus recipient. On the Plus roster is the 2022 Accord, Civic hatchback and sedan, Insight and Odyssey; the 2022 CR-V earned a Top Safety Pick.
Among the HR-V’s key subcompact SUV rivals, the 2022-23 Chevrolet Trailblazer, 2022 Mazda CX-30 and 2022 Toyota Corolla Cross all earned a Top Safety Pick Plus; the 2022 Kia Seltos is a Top Safety Pick.
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- How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2023 Honda HR-V?
- What’s New for Honda in 2022?
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