Improved headlights finally net Ford F-150 an IIHS Top Safety Pick

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Ford’s 2021 F-150 pickup has just become the second new full-size truck on the market to earn the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s coveted Top Safety Pick accolade, thanks to improved headlight options on its higher trims.

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The IIHS only hands out the title to vehicles that collect “Good” ratings in all six of the institute’s crashworthiness tests; can boast an “Advanced” or “Superior” front crash prevention system; and that have at least one “Good” or even “Acceptable” headlight configuration option.

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Improved headlights finally net Ford F-150 an IIHS Top Safety Pick Back to video

It was that last criteria that kept the 2020-model-year Ford from getting the nod – its headlights ranked “Poor” across the board – and it’s still headlights that are keeping the 2021 F-150 from turning that Top Safety Pick into the very-top-tier Top Safety Pick+.

To net that little extra bit, the Acceptable or Good headlights would need to come standard across the model range, but the ’21 F-150’s lower trims still get Poor halogen lamps, according to the IIHS. (If you’re curious, the adaptive LED projectors got the Good rating, while the Ford’s LED reflectors were rated Acceptable.)

Regardless, a Top Safety Pick, even without the +, is still a feather in Ford’s cap — especially when you consider that the IIHS has only given one other new full-size truck the title, the 2021 Ram 1500 . Seems General Motors needs to up its safety game, never mind Nissan ; it’ll be neat, too, to see what the just-released Toyota Tundra earns once tested.