Find the Best Car Deals Near You ⤵
The Safest and Deadliest Used Vehicles
February 26, 2015
The safety of a vehicle is one of the most important factors to consider when making a purchase. After all, big savings and lots of bells and whistles are not going to do you any good if the car you're driving does not keep you and your loved ones safe.
To help car buyers figure out which used cars are safe and which are not, Forbes recently did an interesting study to see which models had the lowest and highest rates of death according to data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
Interestingly, there are 9 models sold between 2009 and 2012 that have had ZERO deaths attributed to them. At the top of the safe list are the likes of the Audi A4, Honda Odyssey, Kia Sorento and Lexus RX 350 AWD, all with zero deaths reported since 2011.
Below is the full list of 19 safest used vehicles, as well as 19 used vehicles with the most driver fatalities.
Safest Used Vehicles
Rank | Vehicle | Category | Driver Deaths (per million registered)* |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Audi A4 AWD | Midsize luxury sedan | 0 |
2 | Honda Odyssey | Minivan | 0 |
3 | Kia Sorento | Midsize SUV | 0 |
4 | Lexus RX 350 AWD | Midsize luxury SUV | 0 |
5 | Mercedes-Benz GL-Class 4WD | Large luxury SUV | 0 |
6 | Subaru Legacy AWD 4-Door | Midsize sedan | 0 |
7 | Toyota Highlander Hybrid AWD | Midsize SUV | 0 |
8 | Toyota Sequoia 4WD | Large SUV | 0 |
9 | Volvo XC90 AWD | Midsize luxury SUV | 0 |
10 | Honda Pilot AWD | Midsize SUV | 2 |
11 | Mercedes-Benz M-Class 4WD | Midsize luxury SUV | 3 |
12 | Ford Crown Victoria | Large sedan | 4 |
13 | GMC Yukon 4WD | Large SUV | 4 |
14 | Acura TL | Midsize luxury car | 5 |
15 | Chevrolet Equinox | Midsize SUV | 5 |
16 | Chevrolet Equinox AWD | Midsize SUV | 5 |
17 | Ford Expedition 4WD | Large SUV | 5 |
18 | Ford Flex | Midsize SUV | 5 |
19 | Mazda CX-9 AWD | Midsize SUV | 5 |
Riskiest Used Vehicles
Rank | Vehicle | Category | Driver Deaths (per million registered)** |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Kia Rio 4-Door | Subcompact | 149 |
2 | Nissan Versa | Subcompact sedan | 130 |
3 | Hyundai Accent 4-Door | Subcompact | 120 |
4 | Chevrolet Aveo 4-Door | Subcompact | 99 |
5 | Hyundai Accent 2-Door | Subcompact | 86 |
6 | Chevrolet Camaro | Sports coupe | 80 |
7 | Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Crew Cab 4WD | Pickup | 79 |
8 | Honda Civic | Compact coupe | 76 |
9 | Nissan Versa | Subcompact hatchback | 71 |
10 | Ford Focus 4-Door | Compact | 70 |
11 | Nissan Cube | Compact station wagon | 66 |
12 | Chevrolet HHR | Compact station wagon | 61 |
13 | Chevrolet Suburban | Full-size SUV | 60 |
14 | Chevrolet Aveo | Subcompact hatchback | 58 |
15 | Mercury Grand Marquis | Full-size sedan | 57 |
16 | Jeep Patriot | Compact SUV | 57 |
17 | Mazda Mazda6 | Midsize sedan | 54 |
18 | Dodge Nitro | Midsize SUV | 51 |
19 | Honda Civic | Compact sedan | 49 |
Signup for The Weekly Newsletter

Each week, I'll keep you up-to-date on the latest car deals and news that might affect your purchase. This includes...
- Best Rebates, Incentives, and Lease Deals
- Latest Car Buying Scams and Tricks
- The Best & Worst Time to Buy a Car
- Which Cars You Should Avoid
About The Author

Latest Weekly Car Buying Tips
October 2025
- Biggest Discounts on New Cars October 2025 Oct 02, 2025
- Best Car Deals by Category Oct 02, 2025
- Real Prices of Compact Cars Oct 02, 2025
- Largest Hidden Dealer Rebates Oct 02, 2025
September 2025
- All SUV Lease Deals Compared September 2025 Sep 25, 2025
- New Cars with the Most Available Inventory Sep 25, 2025
- Top 100 Cheapest New Cars Right Now Sep 25, 2025
- Real Prices of New Compact SUVs Sep 25, 2025
- Top 100 Cheapest Lease Deals Sep 18, 2025
- Cars With the Largest Rebates Sep 18, 2025
- Real Prices of Midsize SUVs Sep 18, 2025
- Best 0% Finance Deals September 2025 Sep 11, 2025
- Best Bang for Your Buck Lease Deals Sep 11, 2025
- Best Electric, Hybrid Lease Deals Sep 11, 2025
- Real Prices of Midsize Cars Sep 11, 2025
- Worst Cars to Lease Right Now Sep 04, 2025
- Best Car Deals Around the Country Sep 04, 2025
- Real Prices of Large SUVs Sep 04, 2025
I welcome your car buying questions. Email Me and I'll be glad to answer them!