Should a side impact collision occur from an SUV or pickup truck, the two vehicles one would want to be in are the redesigned Chevrolet Impala and Toyota Avalon, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The latest side impact test indicated that both cars, which are both designed with side airbags, are the top performers in such a situation. The Buick Lucerne and Hyundai Azera, also equipped with standard side airbags, earned the second highest rating.

Side impacts are the second most common fatal crash type after frontal crashes, according to the IIHS. About 9,700 people were killed in side impacts in 2004. In crashes involving newer model cars in collisions with other passenger vehicles, more driver deaths now occur in cars struck in the side (51 percent) than in the front (44 percent). A vehicle's side evaluation is based on performance in a crash test in which the side of the vehicle is struck by a barrier moving at 31 mph. The barrier represents the front end of a pickup or SUV.

Growing sales of SUVs and pickup trucks have intensified height mismatches among passenger vehicles, which increases the risk of serious head injuries among occupants of side-struck vehicles. SUVs and pickups made up 31 percent of new vehicle sales in 1994; the proportion had increased to nearly 47 percent by 2004. The Impala and Avalon's side structures performed reasonably well in resisting intrusion from the striking barrier during the crash test. Both cars are equipped with standard curtain-style side airbags designed to protect the heads of people in both front and rear seats. The worst performers — Chrysler 300, Ford Five Hundred, and Crown Victoria, according to the IIHS — do not have side airbags.