2015 Accord and Fusion can't match Toyota Camry's Top Safety Pick+ rating

The mid-size family car segment is the largest in all of car sales. In this segment, the Honda Accord and Camry have traded first and second place for so long they might as well call this the Accord-Camry segment. Ford’s Fusion does well some months as does the Nissan Altima. Everyone else sells at a fraction of the top sellers. In a surprise move this week, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) downgraded the Fusion and Accord. That leaves only the 2015 Toyota Camry among the top sellers to achieve the highest possible safety rating in the US, the IIHS Top Safety Pick Plus (TSP+).

Accord and Fusion Still Safe Cars
The reason that the 2015 Honda Accord and 2015 Ford Fusion were moved down a notch to Top Safety Pick (TSP) is that IIHS has raised its standards. Vehicles that earn the TSP+ rating now must have advanced or superior forward collision prevention available. The Accord and Fusion do not offer this level of protection. IIHS President Adrian Lund said of the models that were moved down a notch "Although forward collision warning on its own is a valuable feature, we decided to tighten our criteria to encourage manufacturers to offer autobrake. Systems that don't require a driver response to avoid or mitigate a crash have the most potential for reducing crashes.” He went on to add “Nevertheless, the models that are losing their plus signs are still great choices for safety, as are all the TOP SAFETY PICK winners."

Camry and other Models Offer Optional Advanced Forward Collision Prevention
Toyota’s Camry does offer advanced forward collision prevention, however, like every car in its category it is optional. Buyers should be aware that very few Camrys are shipped to dealers with the system. In the past, only about 5% of Camrys had the system. We reached out to other manufacturers to get the percentage for their cars, but none offered to reveal their numbers.

The Subaru Outback, Chrysler 200 and Mazda6 all also offer advanced or superior forward collision in this vehicle segment. Not a single one of the three test vehicles this author tested this year of those models had the optional system.

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Full IIHS Listing