Four small sport utility vehicles have earned
top scores in front, side and rear crash tests.
They are the 2009 Ford Escape, 2009 Volkswagen Tiguan, 2008
Mitsubishi Outlander and the 2008 Nissan Rogue.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety notes that all those
vehicles have side air bags and are equipped with a stability
control feature that guards against rollovers.
Marks for the Escape also apply to the Mercury Mariner and Mazda
Tribute, and hybrid versions of the Escape and Mariner, which share
the same underpinnings.
The 2008 Jeep Wrangler, which was tested without optional side
air bags, received the Institute's lowest score of poor in the side
test. Chrysler LLC says the Wrangler "meets or exceeds" all
federal safety standards."