The Ford Fiesta sedan/hatchback is the first minicar to earn the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's (IIHS) Top Safety Pick award since the IIHS added a roof strength requirement for rollover protection.
The Fiesta was recognized as a Top Safety Pick after earning good ratings for front, side, rollover, and rear crash protection, and for having electronic stability control as standard equipment. No other minicar the Institute has tested has earned top ratings in all four safety evaluations.
But, the Fiesta's award only applies to cars built after July 2010 because Ford made design changes to strengthen the outside door handles to minimize the possibility of doors opening in side impact crashes. Sorry early adopters, you're out of luck.
Sure, this may sound like a rather pedestrian story, but would you look at these crash photos? God we love good crash photos. We hate cars crashing, and we hate people gawking at car crashes when they're driving by 'em, but for some reason we can't look away from the photos.