2022 Lexus ES earns highest IIHS accolade
October 29, 2021
The 2022 Lexus ES, a midsize luxury car, earns a Top Safety Pick+ award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
To qualify for either of the Institute’s two awards, vehicles must earn good ratings in six IIHS crashworthiness evaluations, including the driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, original side, roof strength and head restraint tests. They must also be available with a front crash prevention system that earns advanced or superior ratings in both the vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian evaluations.
Headlight ratings are what separate the higher-tier Top Safety Pick+ award from the lower-tier Top Safety Pick. For the lower-tier award, at least one good or acceptable headlight system must be available. For the “plus,” good or acceptable headlights must be standard across all trims.
The ES meets all the requirements for the highest award. The two available headlight systems, which were redesigned for the 2022 model year, both earn good ratings. The standard front crash prevention system earns a superior rating in the vehicle-to-vehicle evaluation and an advanced rating in the vehicle-to-pedestrian test.