For the 2023 model year, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced new and stricter safety standards for the Top Safety Pick+ and Top Safety Pick awards, which included better side-impact protection, improved crash-prevention tech, and better illuminating headlights. This easily explains why just 48 models were awarded with one of the institute’s two highest safety ratings and just recently, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz C-Class joined them with a Top Safety Pick+ rating.
The premium sedan from Germany meets all the requirements for the higher-tier award when equipped with the optional front crash prevention system, which comes with the Driver Assistance package. Even with the standard LED projector headlights, the C-Class earns a good rating in the category. Surprisingly, with the optional curve-adaptive LED headlights, that rating drops to acceptable. In the daytime and nighttime vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention tests, the 2023 C-Class gets superior ratings when fitted with the optional upgraded front crash system.
