2017 Ford Fusion Earns IIHS' Top Safety Pick Plus Rating

CARS.COM - For the 2017 model year, the increasingly popular Ford Fusion got a freshened exterior, updated multimedia system and new Sport and Platinum trim levels - as well as some significant safety upgrades that paid off big. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced today that the midsize sedan has joined the ranks of the most crashworthy cars on the road, earning the coveted Top Safety Pick Plus designation.

Related: 2017 Ford Fusion: First Look

The Fusion failed to get a Top Safety Pick rating last year due to receiving only an acceptable score (out of good, acceptable, marginal and poor ratings) in IIHS' stringent small overlap front test. This time out, it received a good rating in all five IIHS test categories, which include moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraints and seats.

"The beefed-up front end improved the Fusion's performance in the small overlap front test from acceptable to good," IIHS said in a statement. "Before the changes, the Fusion had maximum intrusion of 6 inches in the test, and the dummy's head barely contacted the front airbag before sliding off. In contrast, maximum intrusion in the 2017 model was less than 2 inches, and the airbags and safety belt worked well together to control the dummy's movement."

In addition, the Fusion scored a superior rating for its new-for-2017 front crash prevention system, which includes automatic emergency braking and low-speed pedestrian detection. That's compared with last year's basic rating, the lowest, for front crash prevention. In addition to good scores in all five crashworthiness categories, a vehicle must get an advanced or superior rating for available front crash prevention.

"In track tests at 12 mph and 25 mph, the Fusion avoided collisions," IIHS noted.

With its newfound safety bona fides, the Fusion catches up with competitors in a class of highly crashworthy sedans. The 2016 versions of the Honda Accord and Nissan Altima both get a Top Safety Pick Plus designation, and like the new Fusion, they both get a superior rating for front crash prevention. The 2016 Toyota Camry, another Top Safety Pick Plus designee, gets an advanced rating for front crash prevention.