IIHS auto study: models of safety and chariots of danger

Chevrolet models hold the top spot for both highest and lowest death rates, according to a recent Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) study that examined the rates of driver deaths in collisions.

The lowest death rate among more than 200 vehicles is the Astro minivan. The vehicle’s death rate was 7 deaths for every 1 million registered vehicle years (for example, two vehicles registered for 12 months each yield two vehicle years).

The highest death rate is connected to the two-door, two-wheel-drive version of the Chevrolet Blazer, a midsize SUV. The vehicle has a death rate of 232 for every 1-million registered vehicle years.

As high as death rates are in some models, the average rate for all vehicles is going down over time, the IIHS study suggests.

For example, between 1990 and 1994, the average driver death rate for 1989-93 vehicle models was 110 per million registered vehicle years. But this number dropped to 87 per million when the IIHS computed the rates for 1999-2002. Today’s average sits at 79 per million.

“This is a big improvement over time,” Anne McCartt, IIHS senior vice president of research, wrote. “The rates have gone down about 30% since the mid-1990s.”

Rounding out the Top 5 lowest rates of death are the Infiniti G35, BMW 7 series, Toyota 4Runner and the Audi A4/S4 Quattro.

Rounding out the Top 5 models with the worst average rate of driver deaths are the Acura RSX, Nissan 350Z, Kia Spectra hatchback and the Pontiac Sunfire.