Starting with the IIHS list, we then looked at the results of seperate crash tests performed by the government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Not surprisingly, many of the vehicles got top scores there, too. But not all of them. Some were less than perfect or simply hadn't been tested by NHTSA.
Then we looked at stability ratings, which only NHTSA provides. These ratings show how stable a vehicle is in an emergency maneuver. All things being equal, a more stable vehicle - one with a lower center of gravity - should be better able to avoid a crash.
Finally, bigger is better. Front impact crash test scores show only how well a vehicle will do in a head-on with a vehicle of its own size, not a bigger one. It's not just about mass, either. Size means more crush space between between you and the other car.
All of that led us to the Ford Taurus full-sized sedan, which has aced every crash test given.
It's conceivable that the new Volvo S80 and the Audi A6 could be even safer, but those cars have not yet been crash-tested by the government so we can't know for sure.
Until then, the Taurus remains safely at the top of the list. Besides, in the Taurus you don't have to pay luxury car money to get armored car protection.
