Blazer Most Dangerous Vehicle, Insurance Study Finds

The Mercedes E-Class sedan is the safest car on the highway, while the least safe is the two-door Chevrolet Blazer, according to a study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The institute reached its conclusions about the Mercedes, Blazer and 197 other relatively popular vehicles by studying driver death rates of 1999 to 2002 model cars and trucks from 2000 to 2003.

Among four-door midsize cars, the Volkswagen Passat performed best, with an average of 16 driver deaths per million registered vehicles annually, but the Chrysler Sebring had 126 driver deaths.

Among midsize sport utility vehicles with four-wheel drive, the Toyota 4Runner had 12 deaths per million registered vehicles annually, compared with 134 for the two-door Ford Explorer.

The study focused on the rate of driver deaths in various types of crashes, including both single- and multiple-vehicle accidents.

The overall driver death rate, for 199 models studied during the 2000-2003 calendar years, was 87 per million registered vehicles annually, the institute said. The Blazer had an average of 308 driver deaths per million. It also had the highest rate of driver deaths in rollover accidents at 251 per million.

"Large cars and minivans dominate among vehicle models with very low death rates" while those with the highest fatality rates are "mostly small cars and small and midsize SUVs," the study said

The Results

Lowest Rates of Driver Death
Fewer than 30 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years (1999-2002 models during calendar years 2000-03)

Highest Rates of Driver Death
More than 160 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years (1999-2002 models during calendar years 2000-03)