Popular Large SUVs Struggle in Updated Crash Test

The updated moderate overlap frontal test is designed to represent crashes in which two vehicles, driving in opposite directions, hit each other at 40 mph but not directly head-on. This is the sort of collision that would occur if a car drifted across the centerline of a roadway, for example. In addition to a dummy in the driver seat, this test now features a dummy in the second row that represents a small woman or a 12-year-old child. 

When looking only at front-seat protection for the three large SUVs, the IIHS noted that “none allowed substantial intrusion into the driver’s survival space,” although the driver’s head did hit the steering wheel in the Wagoneer, and the Expedition’s driver-side curtain airbag failed to deploy. But it said that in the rear-seat evaluations, the dummy in each of the SUVs showed a “fairly high risk of chest injuries because of high seat belt forces.”

In another evaluation, the small overlap frontal test, the Ford Expedition scored just Marginal because its “structure collapsed significantly—the sort of result we haven’t seen in years,” according to the IIHS. The test, which is conducted on both sides of the vehicle, saw the Expedition’s steering column partly detach from the instrument panel and the windshield roof pillar (called the A-pillar) detach from the rocker panel on the floor of the SUV. IIHS says there was also notable intrusion into the driver’s footwell area, with slightly lesser intrusion into the passenger-side footwell. 

“All of this deformation and intrusion of the occupant compartment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger,” Thomas says. “Vehicles have been performing well in these tests for years, across vehicle types, so these results are unexpected.”

A Ford spokesperson noted that the 2023 and 2024 Expedition met or exceeded the regulatory requirements of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and that the SUV was the only vehicle in the segment to achieve a five-star overall vehicle score in NHTSA’s new car assessment program (NCAP).

When put through the small overlap test, the Chevrolet’s score was Acceptable, while the Jeep got a score of Good. According to the IIHS, more than 90 percent of new models have received a Good rating in this test since 2021. For more information on how these SUVs performed in the full battery of tests, go to IIHS.org.

The crash test findings are a reminder that rear occupants should make sure to buckle up during every ride. In a 2017 IIHS study, only 74 percent of passengers did so compared with 91 percent of front-seat passengers, even though unbelted rear-seat occupants are eight times more likely to be injured in a crash and twice as likely to die compared with belted rear-seat occupants. That’s why Consumer Reports also considers whether or not a vehicle is equipped with belt minders in rear seats as part of its rear-seat safety evaluations. Consumers can check our vehicle model pages to see if their vehicle is equipped with a rear belt minder and find our rear-seat safety scores.

“You don’t get to choose your crash, but you do have a choice in your vehicle,” Thomas says. “You need it to perform well across all crash tests because you don’t know what you’ll be up against when a crash happens. That’s why these test results are so important.”