10 of the Safest Used Crossovers Under $20,000

2015 honda cr-v ・ Photo by Honda

My family had a station wagon when I was a kid – a lovely 1973 Ford Gran Torino Squire with fake wood siding, copper paint, sticky vinyl seats, and a gas-guzzling V8 engine. My father picked it, my mother drove it, and I had to ride in it. Our Chicago suburb was loaded with such monstrosities, which explains why people my age love crossovers.

Actually, people of all ages love crossovers. They are the modern equivalent to the family station wagons of yore, blending the driving dynamics of a car with the added cargo space of a station wagon and the taller driving position and available all-wheel-drive system of a traditional sport/utility vehicle. Thus, they “cross over” between three different types of vehicles. This recipe is a hit with Americans.

Given how popular crossovers are, this list of the safest used models you can buy for less than $20,000 is critical when conducting your research.

In order to determine that the seven vehicles listed below are the safest, we cross-referenced the crash-test ratings published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) with those supplied by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Only those models earning a “Top Safety Pick” from the IIHS and either 4-star or 5-star ratings in NHTSA testing qualified for our final list.

Now, without further delay, these are the safest used crossovers that you can buy for less than $20,000.

Chevrolet Equinox

Aging gracefully, the Chevy Equinox offers lots of interior space and high comfort levels for an affordable price. Cheap interior materials are a bummer, and the way the cargo area is configured can make carrying a stroller difficult, but otherwise the stylish Equinox is difficult to fault. Plus, if you’re so inclined, you can replace the thrifty four-cylinder engine with a 301-horsepower, 3.6-liter V6.

Top Safety Pick

: 4 stars overall, with 4-star ratings for front passenger frontal impact protection and side-impact protection for the driver 

Photo by Chevrolet Media

GMC Terrain

Take one Chevy Equinox, remove the body, install chubby-cheeked styling with oversized fender blisters sourced from T-Squares ’R Us, and you’ve got the GMC Terrain. Inside, it delivers the same set of pros and cons as the Chevy, but GMC offers the Terrain in an exclusive Denali trim level that bumps the crossover’s luxury equation higher than what the Equinox can supply.

Top Safety Pick

: 4 stars overall, with 4-star ratings for front passenger frontal impact protection and side-impact protection for the driver

Honda CR-V

Now that Honda’s popular CR-V earns a “Top Safety Pick” rating, we wholeheartedly recommend this crossover. In addition to upgrading the CR-V’s underlying structure for 2015, Honda has also installed a more powerful and fuel-efficient engine, added a new Touring trim level loaded with the latest safety technologies, and refined the styling. The changes mean that the best-selling model in the segment just got significantly better.

Top Safety Pick

4 stars overall, with a 4-star rating for front passenger frontal impact protection 

Mazda CX-5

Undeniably stylish and irrefutably entertaining to drive, the Mazda CX-5 is just a few inches of legroom and a few cubic feet of cargo space shy of challenging the Honda CR-V for the position of benchmark in the small crossover segment. A refreshed 2016 modeladds more sophisticated infotainment and safety systems. The design, interior materials, and driving dynamics are more refined, but it’s still small inside.

Top Safety Pick

5 stars overall

Photo by Mazda

Mitsubishi Outlander

Intended to represent a re-set for Mitsubishi when it was redesigned for 2014, the Outlander has exhibited no more than a faint pulse since it went on sale. A cornerstone of the automaker’s current effort to reinvent itself, the Outlander has received several updates for 2015 and gets an even more significant overhaul for 2016. Will the changes be meaningful enough to recommend what is a safe but flawed crossover?

Top Safety Pick

4 stars overall for front-drive model and 5 stars overall for all-wheel-drive model. Both versions receive a 4-star rating for frontal-impact protection for the driver

Photo by Mitsubishi Motors North America

Subaru Forester

Sitting at the crossroads where safety, utility, practicality, and value converge, the Subaru Forester offers a little something for everybody. Folks wanting fuel economy can choose the Forester 2.5i, while people with a penchant for performance can select the turbocharged Forester 2.0XT. Ground clearance is mighty impressive at 8.7 inches, and all-wheel drive is standard. Foresters are packaged with the basics, or you can load up with luxuries. No matter how you outfit one, if you like what you see, you’ll love what you’ll own if you choose this Subaru.

Top Safety Pick

5 stars overall but with 4-star frontal impact protection for the front passenger

Toyota RAV4

Roomy, efficient, and expected to last for a long time, Toyota’s Recreational Activity Vehicle is a popular choice in the compact crossover class. Now, thanks to running changes made during the 2015 model year, the RAV4 is also safe, now qualifying for a “Top Safety Pick” rating. Though it lacks character and performance compared to the previous-generation RAV4, the current model is practical and, umm, it’s a Toyota.

Top Safety Pick

5 stars overall*, but with 4-star ratings for the driver and front passenger for frontal-impact protection.

Photo by Benjamin Hunting

Final Word: Additional Safety Considerations with Crossovers

The crossovers on this list are perfect for a family of four. If you’ve got three kids, you’re going to need to upgrade to a larger one with a roomier back seat or a third-row seat, something along the lines of a Toyota Highlander, which performs well in both IIHS and NHTSA testing. That’s also going to cost you more money.

If you’re not going to use a third-row seat on a regular basis, don’t get too hung up on having one, because you don’t really want your kids sitting back there in the first place. In crossovers, there is usually very little crush space between the seat and the tailgate, which is something to consider in terms of another motorist ramming into the back of your vehicle at a high rate of speed.

If you do need a third-row seat, do yourself a favor and upgrade to a minivan or a large, extended-length SUV like a Chevy Suburban. Both types of vehicle leave a greater amount of crush space between the tailgate and the third-row seat. Alternatively, just take two safe cars everywhere you go.

Photo by Toyota