Good safety ratings are one of the most important things that consumers look for in a new vehicle. Advanced safety features are becoming more common at base levels of vehicles each year, and drivers love the ability to have the latest technology at a more affordable price. 

Recently, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) released its picks for their top safety awards, and the 2021 Subaru Ascent won one of the best. What makes the Subaru Ascent so great in terms of safety? Let’s take a look. 

Features of the 2021 Subaru Ascent

Subaru’s three-row crossover SUV has been around for only a few years, but it’s made a significant impact. It’s not the most popular vehicle in its class, but it’s the perfect upgrade for drivers loyal to the Subaru brand if you’ve outgrown your Outback or Forester. The 2021 model comes with more standard features than ever before — but it also comes with a higher price tag. Starting at $33,345, the 2021 Ascent has a lot to offer for its price.

The Subaru Ascent is powered by a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine that can tow up to 5,000 lbs. The three rows of seating allow up to eight passengers, and the interior offers a spacious 86.5 cubic feet of cargo space. On the convenience front, the 2021 Ascent is outfitted with a whopping 19 cupholders throughout, a 6.5-inch touchscreen infotainment system, and is compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The 2021 Subaru Ascent just won a top safety award from the IIHS

Safety is where the Ascent truly shines. The IIHS recently awarded it a Top Safety Pick+, one of the highest ratings offered. According to the IIHS’s website, a vehicle must have good ratings in “the driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraint tests. 

It also needs advanced or superior ratings for both vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention, as well as an acceptable or good rating for all its available headlight options,” to qualify for a Top Safety Pick+ award.

The Ascent’s headlights for 2021 provide a big reason for the Top Safety Pick+ title. Curve-adapted LED projector headlights come standard on the 2021 Subaru Ascent, and they test highly in the IIHS’s headlight tests. 2021 is the first year that the advanced headlights come standard; they were only available at higher trim levels in the past model years. 

What safety features does the Subaru Ascent offer?

In addition to its top-of-the-line headlights, the 2021 Ascent offers a ton of other safety features. Subaru’s EyeSight Safety Suite is standard on all models. This includes advanced adaptive cruise control, lane centering and lane-keep assist, reverse automatic braking, and forward collision mitigation, including pedestrian detection. 

The EyeSight Safety Suite also provides a head-up display to make it easy to view safety alerts and warnings while driving without distracting your eyes from the road.

Safety ratings from the IIHS come from many different road tests and crash tests. The IIHS rated the 2021 Subaru Ascent highly in crashworthiness, crash avoidance and mitigation, and child seat anchors quality. There wasn’t a single category for which the IIHS rated the Ascent lower than “good” — something that rarely happens!

If safety is important to you, then the 2021 Ascent is an excellent option that has room for the whole family. The 2021 model added several advanced safety features into the standard package to rest easy, knowing your bases are covered.