Kia Soul aces IIHS crash test; Forte is 'marginal'

Kia has improved the crash-safety rating of its small crossover, the Soul, but couldn't quite perform the same magic for its compact sedan, the Forte, in tests for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The Soul raised its rating to good, up from poor, in the single test that has tripped up many automakers lately and left them scrambling to make improvements, the so-called "small overlap front test." The test simulates slamming a car into a pole on the driver's side or a glancing front-end blow, rather than hitting another car or object dead on.

The 2013 did poorly in the test, and Kia waited for a redesign, the 2015 model, to retest it. The IIHS says now the "driver space was maintained reasonably well with a small amount of intrusion. The dummy's movement was well controlled, and its head hit the frontal air bag, which stayed in position during the crash. The side-curtain air bag deployed and provided sufficient coverage to protect the head from contact with side structure and outside objects."

Soul now qualifies as an IIHS top safety pick.

The Forte, meanwhile, only managed to show slight improvement. It is now rated marginal, also up from poor. IIHS says it was one one of the worst performers before the changes.

The IIHS says Forte received structural upgrades to the cabin, but even with the improvements, the driver's space wasn't maintained in a crash, and the dummy's head slid off the air bag and struck the instrument panel. The side air bag didn't offer enough protection, either.

IIHS says its Top Safety Pick recommendation is limited to vehicles that earn good or acceptable ratings for small overlap protection and good ratings in the Institute's moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests.