While everyone was taking note of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's list of the safest cars yesterday, we became curious about the bottom of the list. Sure, it's one thing to make the list of recommendations, but quite another to advise what models to avoid.
ALSO ON DRIVE ON: The Insurance Institute's list of the safest cars
A review of the models listed on the institute's website -- just updated with more 2010 models -- makes it pretty easy to spot the dogs. The one piece of good news: There are no unsafe cars being sold, per se. It's just that some are safer than others. If they were judged unsafe, they wouldn't be allowed onto sales lots. Remember, too, that size matters. A giant sedan with average safety ratings could whip a tiny car with excellent marks.
"There aren't many clunkers out there in the safety area," says IIHS spokesman Russ Rader. Many of the worst are older models due for phaseout or refresh. From the 145 models listed, here are all of those that earned at least one "poor" rating:
MINICARS
2009 Chevrolet Aveo -- Poor when hit from the rear
2009 Hyundai Accent and Kia Rio -- Poor when hit from the side or from the rear
SMALL
2009 Volkswagen New Beetle -- Poor when hit from the side
2010 Chrysler PT Cruiser -- Poor when hit from the side or the rear
LARGE LUXURY
2010 Infiniti M35/M45 -- Poor when hit from the rear
2010 Cadillac STS -- Poor when hit from the rear
SMALL SUV
2010 Ford Escape Hybrid; Mercury Mariner Hybrid and Mazda Tribute Hybrid -- Poor in a rollover
2009 Hyundai Tucson -- Poor in a rollover
2010 Jeep Wrangler -- Poor when hit from the side
MIDSIZE SUV
2009 Hummer H3 -- Poor when hit from the rear
2009 Kia Sorento -- Poor when hit from the side
MINIVAN
2009 Nissan Quest -- Poor when hit from the rear
2010 Toyota Sienna -- Poor when hit from the rear
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