When the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) first crash-tested the 2024 Kia EV9, the three-row electric SUV aced nearly every test. The sole exception was its headlight performance. While they were good for illuminating, they caused significant amounts of glare, so much so that the IIHS gave the lights a "Poor" rating, preventing the EV6 from getting the Top Safety Pick award. But thanks to new headlights, the EV9 now takes home the commendation.
The updated headlights were introduced in February of this year, and they maintain the strong illumination, but without the blinding glare, thus earning the top "Good" rating. This appears to be a hardware change, though, so EV9s built before February 2024 won't get the award (can't make hardware changes over-the-air).
For reference, the other EV9 test ratings are as follows. In small and moderate overlap tests, as well as the updated side impact test, it got the "Good" rating. That rating also applies to forward crash prevention, seat belt reminders and child seat anchor access.
As for the reason the EV9 doesn't have the even higher Top Safety Pick+ award, it's because the IIHS has not yet tested it with the updated moderate overlap crash test. So stay tuned for when additional testing is conducted.
