Better but not great…
The 2022 Toyota Tacoma extended cab pickup earned a marginal rating in the passenger-side small overlap front crash test due to heightened injury risks to the front seat passenger, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said today. The crash dummy’s position in relation to the door frame and dashboard after the crash test “indicates that the passenger’s survival space was not maintained well,” IIHS said.
Still, this was an improvement. The marginal rating applies to vehicles built after October 2021, when Toyota modified the rear leaf springs. Vehicles built prior to that date are rated poor. In an earlier test of a vehicle built before the changes, one of the rear leaf springs punctured the fuel tank, resulting in a fire risk and an automatic downgrade.
Toyota’s modifications corrected the fuel-leak problem, but other issues continued in the more recent test. The small pickup’s door frame and dashboard intruded into the occupant survival space during the crash, contributing to heightened injury risks to the front seat passenger. Injury measurements taken from the dummy indicated a high risk of injury to the occupant’s right leg and a moderate risk of injury to the left leg.
Although the frontal and side-curtain airbags performed reasonably well, the dummy’s head also struck the grab handle on the A-pillar on the right side of the windshield.
The Tacoma earned good ratings in five other crashworthiness evaluations – the driver-side small overlap, moderate overlap front, original side, roof strength and head restraint tests.
“The standard front crash prevention system earns a superior rating in the vehicle-to-vehicle evaluation but was not tested for pedestrian detection. The optional LED reflector headlights available on higher trims earn a good rating, while the base halogens are rated marginal,” IIHS said.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
IIHS Says Toyota Tacoma 2022 MY Marginal in Crash Test
Better but not great…
The 2022 Toyota Tacoma extended cab pickup earned a marginal rating in the passenger-side small overlap front crash test due to heightened injury risks to the front seat passenger, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said today. The crash dummy’s position in relation to the door frame and dashboard after the crash test “indicates that the passenger’s survival space was not maintained well,” IIHS said.
Still, this was an improvement. The marginal rating applies to vehicles built after October 2021, when Toyota modified the rear leaf springs. Vehicles built prior to that date are rated poor. In an earlier test of a vehicle built before the changes, one of the rear leaf springs punctured the fuel tank, resulting in a fire risk and an automatic downgrade.
Toyota’s modifications corrected the fuel-leak problem, but other issues continued in the more recent test. The small pickup’s door frame and dashboard intruded into the occupant survival space during the crash, contributing to heightened injury risks to the front seat passenger. Injury measurements taken from the dummy indicated a high risk of injury to the occupant’s right leg and a moderate risk of injury to the left leg.
Although the frontal and side-curtain airbags performed reasonably well, the dummy’s head also struck the grab handle on the A-pillar on the right side of the windshield.
The Tacoma earned good ratings in five other crashworthiness evaluations – the driver-side small overlap, moderate overlap front, original side, roof strength and head restraint tests.
“The standard front crash prevention system earns a superior rating in the vehicle-to-vehicle evaluation but was not tested for pedestrian detection. The optional LED reflector headlights available on higher trims earn a good rating, while the base halogens are rated marginal,” IIHS said.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.