OREANDA-NEWS. January 18, 2016. In one of the industry’s most demanding vehicle tests, the 2016 Hyundai Sonata earned the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety’s highest accolade for safety, receiving a 2016 TOP SAFETY PICK+ award. The IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK+ award helps consumers select vehicles that offer the highest level of crash protection.

“Occupant safety, above all other things, is the single most important factor when designing and engineering Hyundai vehicles,” said Mike O’Brien, vice president, corporate and product planning, Hyundai Motor America. “Receiving this award, given the increasing demands of the test, is a testament to our emphasis on safety at every price point, and is a point of pride for every Hyundai associate.”

The requirements for TOP SAFETY PICK+ were tightened for 2016. To qualify, winners must earn good ratings in each of the Institute’s five crashworthiness tests – small overlap crash test, moderate overlap crash test, side and roof strength, and head restraint tests – and have an available front crash prevention system earning an advanced or superior rating.

“While the Sonata received the same TOP SAFETY PICK+ award in 2015, the vehicle’s structure was improved to raise the small overlap front ratings from acceptable to good,” said Adrian Lund, IIHS president. “With a more rigorous test environment for 2016, receiving another TOP SAFETY PICK+ award acknowledges Hyundai’s commitment to occupant safety by consistently engineering strength and quality improvements into its vehicles.”

For 2016, the Sonata added even more safety equipment, making Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) functionality available to models previously equipped with Forward Collision Warning (FCW). Additional advanced safety options available on the 2016 Sonata lineup include Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Smart Cruise Control with spot/start capability, rear parking sensors, Blind Spot Detection (BSD) with Rear Cross-traffic Alert and Lane Change Assist. Standard safety equipment includes Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) with Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and Traction Control System, driver’s side blind spot mirror, seven airbags, including a driver’s knee airbag, four-wheel disc brakes and ABS with Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist and Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) with indicators for each tire.