Top Safety Pick awards goes to Honda Odyssey, GM Lambda CUVs

13 years, 9 months ago - 13 March 2011

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has announced that the 2011 Honda Odyssey, Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia have all been named Top Safety Picks, the organization's highest respect.

The Odyssey is the second minivan to earn the award since IIHS added roof strength requirements to its criteria for earning the Top Safety Pick designation, the other being the Toyota Sienna. Since the Honda minivan had already been tested and rated Good for front, side and rear crash protection, only the roof strength measurement was required this time around.

Similarly, the GMC Acadia was only tested for roof strength as it had already passed the previous crash-testing regimen. The Odyssey's roof withstood a force more than five times the minivan's weight; the Acadia managed four times its weight. To put this in context, a vehicle's roof must be able to withstand 1.5 times its weight to pass the more lenient federal testing standards.

Because the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave share their architecture with the tested GMC Acadia, those vehicles were also awarded Top Safety Picks.