Mazda has been on a roll lately, earning the coveted Top Safety Pick+ rating on five models (the most of any automaker) including the Mazda3 sedan and hatchback, Mazda6, CX-3, and CX-5. The CX-9 failed to earn the Top Safety Pick+ rating but did manage to receive the Top Safety Pick rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Now, the 2020 Mazda CX-30, the brand's newest model, has been put through the IIHS's challenging gauntlet of crash tests.

The CX-30 fell short of the Top Safety Pick+ rating but did manage to earn a Top Safety Pick score when equipped with specific headlights. To qualify for this award, the CX-30 had to earn "Good" ratings in all six IIHS crashworthiness evaluations. These include the driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraint tests. It also needed to earn "Advanced" or "Superior" ratings for vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention and the greatest challenge of all, an "Acceptable" or "Good" headlight rating.

The IIHS published a video showing the CX-30 undergoing one of its most difficult evaluations, the driver-side small overlap crash test. This is by far one of the most difficult crash tests because the car is not able to rely on its crumple zone, which is designed to absorb the energy of an impact.

"Safety is a top priority with Mazda, and we are proud to have the CX-30 earn the 2020 IIHS Top Safety Pick award," said Mazda North American Operations President Jeff Guyton. "We are committed to providing the most advanced safety technologies in our vehicles, and we continue to challenge ourselves to create unique products and technologies, which provide our customers a confident, relaxing, joyful driving experience."

The CX-30 includes Mazda's i-Activsense advanced safety suite including features such as Advanced Smart City Brake Support with Pedestrian Detection, Smart Brake Support with Collision Warning, Smart Brake Support, Mazda Radar Cruise Control with Stop & Go Function, Blind Spot Monitoring with Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, Lane Departure Warning System with Lane-Keep Assist, Driver Attention Alert, High Beam Control, Adaptive Front-Lighting System, and Traffic Sign Recognition.

As with most new models that fail to receive the Top Safety Pick+ rating, it appears like the CX-30 only missed the top score due to its headlights, which earned a "Good" score and "Poor" score depending on which headlights were fitted.