Brian, an engineer, and Emma, a doctor, had a baby on the way. They were already concerned about fitting the mountain of equipment babies seem to require into their 2011 Hyundai Sonata, and then they learned that the car had a B- Auto Grade.

Brian and Emma felt it was time to go shopping for a “safety mobile” to properly protect their impending precious cargo.

Key Decision Points

Appreciating the mix of drivability and cargo space, they began looking into mid-size SUVs. They prefer to lease rather than buy, so they only considered new vehicles.

Their candidate set for comparing safety ratings:

All their candidate vehicles have either an A or an A- Auto Grade, with As or A-s where there is enough data for a personalized grade for men and women 31-50 years old.

Brian and Emma asked some probing questions about the Auto Grades. The Hyundai Santa Fe was one of the few vehicles with an A- in the bunch, yet the IIHS had chosen it as a Top Safety Pick+ for 2018. The explanation that Auto Grades are based on real crashes with real people whereas the IIHS ratings are based on lab tests made sense to them, and they related to the statistics because of their professions.

Results

Ultimately, Brian and Emma leased a 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. “An A- is still an A” and they liked the stamp of approval from the IIHS. They were also familiar with Hyundai and had a good experience with them on their previous lease. Finally, it was a more economical choice than others in their candidate set, and “heaven knows babies are expensive!”