The 2021 Ram 1500 is being ignored, but it doesn’t deserve to be on the back burner. We know that it’s hard to compete against the Ford F-150, but now the Ram 1500 has a pretty competitive edge by being incredibly safe. 

Is the 2021 Ram 1500 a safe truck? 

Yes, the 2021 Ram 1500 is extremely safe. In fact, it’s an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick. Achieving this honor from the IIHS is no simple task. According to Torque News, the Ram 1500 Crew Cab is the first truck to earn this award under stricter guidelines. 

A pickup truck needs to be equipped with pedestrian automatic emergency braking, and adaptive LED headlights with high-beam assist to earn this award. Luckily, the Ram 1500 has both of those features. 

Mike Koval Jr., Head of Rem Brand, shared that the Ram 1500’s Top Safety Pick win affirms FCA’s continual commitment to robust engineering innovation as a means to serve our customers. The award enhances Ram’s ability to deliver a combination of ruggedness, utility, and refinement. 

How did the Ram 1500 perform in the IIHS crash tests? 

First, let’s cover the requirements. To be an IIHS Top Safety Pick, you need automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection. Meaning the truck must be equipped with a system to help detect pedestrians. 

If a person is detected, the system must automatically apply the brakes to reduce or eliminate the possibility of impact. Ram’s pedestrian detection system received an advanced rating from the IIHS. When being tested at speeds of 12 mph and 25 mph, the 2021 Ram 1500 was able to avoid a collision. 

The adaptive LED lights also proved to be very safe. They can adapt to curves and increase visibility while the truck is in motion. The low beams earned a fair rating on the straightaways, and viability was good around right curves, but only fair around left curves. 

The high beams also scored a good rating for visibility on straightaways. They earned a good score for illuminating right curves and fair for left curves. The high beam assist also compensated for some limitations of the low beams. 

Best of all, the 2021 Ram 1500 earned the highest score possibles in all six crash tests. The IIHS simulates how the truck will perform in three different types of front-end crashes, side impacts, rear impacts, and rollover risks. So, it’s safe to say that the Ram 1500 can protect passengers. 

What safety features does the Ram 1500 have? 

Not every safety feature comes standard on the Ram 1500, but you do get more standard features with higher trim options such as the Big Horn and Laramie trim. Options can be added to lower-trim models as well. 

Available safety features include adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, lane-keeping assistance, a 360-degree surround-view camera, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-path detection, stability control, automatic emergency braking, adaptive headlights, four-wheel ABS, and more. 

There are child safety locks, too, and the child safety latch system got a marginal score. They were a little difficult to use, but with your own child seat, you’ll master the process in no time. Plus, you can relax knowing that your truck will keep your family safe.