The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has awarded the 2018 Nissan Kicks and 2018 and 2019 Sentra with its Top Safety Pick award when the cars are equipped with specific features.

This latest recognition for Nissan's new subcompact SUV and compact car marks the fifth time the automaker has earned a 2018 Top Safety Pick award from the institute. 

The Kicks and Sentra were put through the paces and garnered good ratings in five key crashworthiness tests that include the driver-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraint tests.

Both vehicles also met the criteria of offering an available front crash prevention system that earns a superior or advanced rating as well as available headlights, earning a good or acceptable rating.

Consider the case of the 2018 Kicks, which offers a standard, superior-rated front crash prevention system along with headlights on the SR trim that get an acceptable rating. However, the base headlights are rated as poor.

While the 2018 and 2019 Sentra also earned a superior rating for its front crash prevention, the system is not standard. Similar to the Kicks, the compact car's headlights are rated acceptable on some trims but poor on others.