The 2021 Chevrolet Traverse is a spacious SUV that has a really cool safety feature: Rear Seat Reminder. Rear Seat Reminder is designed to remind parents to check the backseat to make sure children are not forgotten. The 2021 Chevy Traverse also gets good safety ratings all around. In fact, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has awarded it a Top Safety Pick Award. 

What is an IIHS Top Safety Pick Award?

To be awarded an IIHS Top Safety Pick award, an SUV must score a good rating in all IIHS crash test ratings. These include the driver-side small overlap front, the passenger-side small overlap front, and the moderate overlap front. Additionally, the vehicle must get a good score in the side crash tests, roof strength, and head restraint tests. To get a Top Safety Pick+ award, the vehicle must ace all these tests.

The SUV must also have an advanced or superior in both the vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian tests. Headlights must have a good or acceptable rating available. Oftentimes one trim level has good headlight ratings while another trim level does not, so it’s important to check the test results of the trim level you’re considering purchasing. To receive the Top Safety Pick+ award, the headlights on all trim levels must be good or acceptable. 

The crashworthiness test ratings are all good

The small overlap front: driver and passenger side and moderate overlap front test ratings are all good. The structure and safety cage rating within the passenger side test does get a marginal rating. 

The small overlap on the driver side test simulates how well a car does when the front left corner of the vehicle strikes something like another car or a tree or utility pole. This test is important in part because it measures how well the vehicle’s airbags and seatbelts do. 

Side crash test ratings are also good for the 2021 Chevy Traverse. All subcategories within the side crash test ratings are also good. 

The head restraints & seats and front crash prevention in the 2021 Chevrolet Traverse are good

The head restraints and seats all get good ratings. The roof strength gets a good overall evaluation. The front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle is superior in all but the optional High Country trim level, which is advanced. 

The headlights aren’t great in the Traverse. There are three headlight variations, and only one of them gets an acceptable rating. The other two are poor. Without the acceptable rating, the Traverse wouldn’t have won the Top Safety Pick award. 

If you’re looking for an SUV, the 2021 Chevrolet Traverse is a great choice – provided you get one with acceptable headlights. If the Chevy Traverse is on your short list, do your research carefully and make sure you choose the safest SUV within your budget.