[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors have ranked first and second in safety ratings by the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, outperforming global rivals.

Hyundai obtained top safety pick and TSP+ ratings for its 10 models from 2018-19 in all six crashworthiness tests and a headlights test, with Kia receiving the same scores for nine vehicles, according to the US agency and Hyundai’s American sales unit on Sept. 20.

Its top-rated marques include the midsize sedan Sonata, the Santa Fe sport utility vehicle, the Tuscon and Kona small SUVs and the minicar Accent. 

Kia’s vehicles with the top ratings include the large sedan Cadenza, the Sorento intermediate SUV and the Soul and Niro hybrid small cars.

The G80 and G90 sedans, which belong to Hyundai‘s luxury brand Genesis, also earned TSP+ ratings from the American auto insurance body.

Japanese automakers Toyota and Subaru shared the No. 3 spot with eight models each, followed by Honda with seven vehicles and Mazda with six. Lexus, Nissan and BMW came next with five cars, trailed by Volvo and Mercedes-Benz with three and Audi with two.  

By Song Seung-hyun and newswires (ssh@heraldcorp.com)