Not a single small SUV out of 21 tested earned a good rating in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's headlight evaluations, and only four achieved acceptable-rated headlights.
Among the 47 different headlight combinations available in the 21 vehicles, more than two-thirds rated poor.
The IIHS said that its evaluations of small SUVs showed that a vehicle's price tag did not correspond to the quality of headlights. Moreover, the IIHS added, more modern lighting types, including high-intensity discharge (“HID”) and LED lamps, and curve-adaptive systems, which swivel in the direction of steering, also were no guarantee of good performance.
“Manufacturers aren't paying enough attention to the actual on-road performance of this basic equipment,” said Matthew Brumbelow, IIHS senior research engineer. “We're optimistic that improvements will come quickly now that we've given automakers something to strive for.”
The best-performing headlights in the small SUV group belong to a new model, the Mazda CX-3, and are available on its Grand Touring trim. They are curve-adaptive LED lights with optional high beam assist. The low beams perform well on both right curves and fairly well on the straightaway and sharp left curve; however, they provide inadequate light on the gradual left curve, according to the IIHS. The high beams perform well on most approaches, the IIHS said.
The IIHS added that other vehicles available with acceptable headlights are the Ford Escape, the Honda CR-V, and the Hyundai Tucson. None of the three are curve-adaptive, and only the Escape has high-beam assist. Still, all of them provide fair or good illumination in most scenarios.
According to the IIHS, the worst headlights among the small SUVs belong to a different Honda — the new-for-2016 HR-V. It said that the illumination provided by the HR-V's halogen low beams and high beams is inadequate on all four curves and on the straightaway.
The HR-V is one of 12 small SUVs that cannot be purchased with anything other than poor-rated headlights, the IIHS added.
The IIHS said that, for vehicles available with higher-rated headlights, consumers need to make sure they are getting the right ones. For example, the Tucson's acceptable headlight combination is available on the SUV's Limited version, but the headlights on other trim levels of the Tucson earn a poor rating. Even the Limited, when equipped with curve-adaptive headlights, earned a poor rating because of excessive glare, according to the IIHS.
Seventeen of the rated SUV headlight combinations have unacceptable glare, the IIHS found. They include all types of lights – halogen, HID, and LED – and none of the headlight types is more likely than the others to have excessive glare. Three of the 17 fell short of an acceptable rating on the basis of glare alone.
HEADLIGHT RATINGS FOR SMALL SUVS
2016 models unless specified
ACCEPTABLE
2017 Ford Escape
Honda CR-V
Hyundai Tucson
Mazda CX-3
MARGINAL
BMW X1
Mazda CX-5
Mitsubishi Outlander
Toyota RAV4
Volkswagen Tiguan
POOR
Audi Q3
Buick Encore
Chevrolet Trax
Fiat 500X
Honda HR-V
Jeep Patriot
Jeep Renegade
Jeep Wrangler
2017 Kia Sportage
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
Nissan Rogue
Subaru Forester
Learn more: http://www.iihs.org/.
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].