• Rivian improved the R1S’s safety rating for the 2025 model year.
• As a result, the updated EV is the only large SUV to get a Top Safety Pick+ award from the IIHS.
• The previous model had a Top Safety Pick award, which is second-best.

The updated Rivian R1S is now the safest large SUV on American roads, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). During the latest crash testing session, the 2025 R1S got a Top Safety Pick+ rating, the highest possible for a production vehicle that goes through the IIHS testing procedure.

The result is an improvement from the previous iteration of the Rivian R1S, which got a Top Safety Pick rating. The 2025 R1S got Good ratings on all the subcategories except for the Headlights which were rated as Acceptable by the IIHS. 

By contrast, the 2022 to 2024 R1S had a Marginal rating for the updated Moderate overlap front crash test, an Acceptable rating for the standard pedestrian front crash prevention and a Poor rating for the seat belt reminders. The headlights were rated as Good.

In the updated Moderate overlap front crash test, the 2025 Rivian R1S received Good ratings across the board, except for the driver leg/foot protection, where it was rated as Adequate. In this test, the vehicle travels at 40 miles per hour into a stationary barrier with 40% of the vehicle’s front overlapping. There are dummies in the front driver’s seat and the left rear seat, and the non-profit organization measures the impact forces recorded by the dummies during the crash. The IIHS said Rivian made modifications to the front body structure and rear seats to improve occupant safety in frontal crashes.

In the headlights department, where the updated R1S was rated worse than its predecessor, the IIHS said that visibility was good with both the low and high beams but that the low beams created some glare.

6

Victoria Scott / Motor1

To receive a Top Safety Pick+ award from the IIHS, a vehicle must get a Good rating in the small overlap front test, an Acceptable or Good rating in the updated moderate overlap front test, a Good rating in the updated side test and an Acceptable or Good rating for both the headlights and the pedestrian front crash prevention test. 

In total, there are 48 vehicles with a Top Safety Pick+ award for this year, including the 2024 Rivian R1T pickup, Tesla Model Y, Genesis Electrified GV70, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Subaru Solterra, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Hyundai Ioniq 6 and Genesis Electrified G80.