Toyota Comments on Poor Crash Test Performance

Luke Vandezande
by Luke Vandezande

Toyota issued a statement today in response to its poor performance in a new crash test from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The IIHS released results from its new small frontal overlap crash test, which simulates hitting a pole, tree, or vehicle head-on with partial contact. While most of the tested vehicles got an “acceptable” score, the Toyota Prius V and Camry both got “poor” ratings. What’s more, Toyota was the only brand to get the low score.

SEE ALSO: Toyota Camry, Prius v Score Poorly in New Crash Tests

“The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) periodically develops new, more severe or specialized tests which go beyond federal requirements,” the automaker said in an official release. “With this new test, the Institute has raised the bar again, and we will respond to the challenge. We are evaluating the new test protocols and can say that there will not be one single solution to achieve greater crash performance in this area.”

But this isn’t the first time Toyota found itself at the bottom of the barrel in the IIHS’ new test. Earlier this year, a series of luxury vehicles underwent the same test and Lexus, among others, got the same “poor” rating.

SEE ALSO: Luxury Cars Falter in New IIHS Crash Test

In the same release, Toyota pointed out that it also has 19 vehicles between Lexus and Toyota that were named 2012 “Top Safety Picks” by the IIHS. It also said the Prius V hasn’t been rated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Discuss this story at ToyotaNation.com

Luke Vandezande
Luke Vandezande

Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.

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