Kia Soul, Sportage Capture Top Safety Pick+ Award

Two more Kia vehicles — the 2018 Soul compact car and 2018 Sportage SUV — have each earned a 2017 Top Safety Pick+ award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The automaker has won a total of six Top Safety Pick+ awards this year, IIHS said. The Soul and Sportage qualify for the prestigious safety award when equipped with optional front crash prevention and specific headlights.

To qualify for the 2017 Top Safety Pick+ award, a vehicle must draw the top rating of “good” in all five IIHS crashworthiness tests — small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraints. Additionally, the vehicle must garner a rating of “advanced” or “superior” for front crash prevention and a rating of “acceptable” or “good” for headlights.

IIHS rated the optional front crash prevention system on the Soul and the Sportage as “superior.” In the 12 mph IIHS track test, both vehicles avoided a collision. In the 25 mph track test, the Sportage avoided a collision and the Soul’s impact speed was reduced by an average of 24 mph. The system on both vehicles includes a forward collision-warning component that meets criteria from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

When equipped with optional high-intensity discharge (HID) lights, the Soul attracted a rating of “good” for headlights.

Because the optional HID lights on Sportage cars built after June create some glare for drivers of oncoming vehicles, they drew a rating of “acceptable,” IIHS said. The base halogen headlights on both vehicles drew a “poor” rating, as did the HID headlights on Sportage SUVs built before July.

These two vehicles join four others from Kia that have earned the 2017 Top Safety Pick+ award. They are the Forte, Optima, Cadenza and Sorento.