Only One Pickup Truck has Good Headlights

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has put pickup truck headlights to the test.

And like the agency’s previous evaluation, most models rated poorly in the evaluation, with all four small pickups evaluated being only available with headlights that earn a poor rating. Three out of the seven large pickups also earned a poor rating, with the Honda Ridgeline being the only model to earn a good rating – but that’s only on the most expensive trim levels.

In total, IIHS evaluated 11 trucks with a total of 23 possible headlight combinations. Of those, 14 of them have excessive glare, contributing to their poor ratings. A vehicle is unable to earn a rating better than marginal if it produces too much glare in any of the five test scenarios.

SEE ALSO: Most Headlights Rate Poorly in First IIHS Evaluation

As for the only pickup truck to earn a good rating, it’s the Honda Ridgeline RTL-E and Black Edition trims, equipped with LED projector low beams that provide fair to good visibility on most approaches, although they provide inadequate visibility on the gradual left curve.

Earning an acceptable rating is the GMC Sierra, while the Nissan Titan and Ram 1500 both received a marginal score. The remaining seven pickups all earned a poor rating: Chevrolet Silverado, Ford F-150, Toyota Tundra, Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma.

“These latest ratings follow the same disappointing pattern as the other groups,” says Matthew Brumbelow, an IIHS senior research engineer. “As vehicle safety has improved in recent years, this important equipment has been overlooked.”

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