2022 Toyota Avalon earns IIHS award

The 2022 Toyota Avalon, a large car, earns a Top Safety Pick award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety when equipped with specific headlights.

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.

With a new standard front crash prevention system that earns superior ratings in both IIHS evaluations, the four-door Avalon meets all the requirements for Top Safety Pick when equipped with the LED projector headlights that come with the Limited, Touring and Hybrid Limited trims. A poor rating for the LED reflectors supplied with other trims prevents the sedan from qualifying for the “plus.”