One Crash Test Keeps the Grand Highlander Off the IIHS Honor Roll

A single Acceptable score in the driver-side small overlap test is all that keeps the Toyota Grand Highlander from an IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award.

In that test, the structure around the Grand Highlander’s driver allowed too much intrusion for a Good rating, although the dummy’s injury measures didn’t show elevated risk for the driver. Both IIHS awards require a Good small overlap rating, so the Acceptable score rules out the Top Safety Pick and the Top Safety Pick+ alike.

The IIHS published the result in an October 2025 ratings release in which nine other models qualified for awards, including two of the Grand Highlander’s three-row rivals, the Ford Explorer built after June 2025 and the Hyundai Ioniq 9, which both earned Top Safety Pick+. Toyota’s own Corolla Cross earned a Top Safety Pick in the same round.

The rest of the Grand Highlander’s scorecard is strong. It rates Good in the updated moderate overlap test, including every rear-passenger measure. It also rates Good in the updated side test, Good for front crash prevention against vehicles and pedestrians, and Good for seat belt reminders and LATCH. Its LED headlights rate Acceptable on all trims, which is enough for either award. The ratings apply to 2025 and 2026 models, and the small overlap score covers 2024 through 2026 models.

Test	Rating
Small overlap front	Acceptable (driver side), Good (passenger side)
Moderate overlap front (updated)	Good
Side (updated)	Good
Headlights	Acceptable
Front crash prevention, vehicle and pedestrian	Good

The related Lexus TX has the same Acceptable driver-side small overlap rating, with its passenger-side rating based on a Toyota test of a Grand Highlander. The IIHS hasn’t yet published ratings for the 2027 Grand Highlander, which reaches dealers before the end of this year.

The Toyota Report Take

This is a much better problem to have than the back-seat failures that keep the RAV4 and Sienna off the list, because the Grand Highlander protects its rear passengers well. The small overlap structure is an engineering fix Toyota knows how to make, and the driver dummy’s Good injury numbers show the risk is limited. Still, when Ford and Hyundai can put a Top Safety Pick+ badge on a three-row family SUV and Toyota can’t, that matters to shoppers, and Toyota should strengthen the driver-side structure at the next update.