On sale in the US since the second half of last year, the 2017 Buick LaCrosse crossed paths with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and came out with a Top Safety Pick rating.
It narrowly missed on a Top Safety Pick+ due to its headlights and child seat anchors, which were rated as ‘Poor’ and ‘Marginal’ respectively, but obtained ‘Good’ overall ratings in the five crash-worthiness tests.
These include the challenging small overlap front, which replicates what happens when the front driver-side corner of the car hits another vehicle, a tree, or utility pole. Maximum intrusion of 4 inches (10 cm) was observed at the footrest, the airbags and safety belt are said to have worked “reasonably”. Measurements taken from the dummy indicated a “low risk of significant injuries”.
A ‘Superior’ rating was awarded to the 2017 Buick LaCrosse for the front crash prevention system, when equipped with the automatic braking, which is optional. The vehicle managed to avoid a collision in the 12 mph (19 km/h) track test, and to reduce the impact speed by an average of 24 mph (39 km/h) in the 25 mph (40 km/h) test. This score transforms into ‘Basic’ when the car is fitted only with an optional warning system.
In the future, the LaCrosse could qualify for IIHS’ “+” score if GM introduces better headlights, even if they’re only offered on certain trim levels. According to the agency, the current model’s low beams “provide inadequate visibility on the straightaway and the left curves”.
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