The 2026 Honda Passport, along with over a decade of used Civic and Accord models, has been recommended for teen drivers by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Consumer Reports. The Passport is the only new Honda on the list. For families shopping the used market, IIHS and Consumer Reports recommend Civic coupes and sedans from 2014 through 2025, which start under $10,000, and Accord sedans from 2013 through 2025, including hybrids from 2014 forward, starting under $20,000.
The 2026 Passport earned IIHS Top Safety Pick+ and Consumer Reports’ Safety Verdict of Best. The Civic and Accord models recommended by the two organizations meet braking and handling standards, avoid confusing or distracting control layouts, and provide strong crash protection in IIHS testing. All three models benefit from Honda’s Advanced Compatibility Engineering body structure, designed to manage energy in frontal collisions.
The used-vehicle recommendations reflect a decade of Honda Sensing deployment. Honda began installing the safety and driver-assistance suite in 2014 and made it standard across most of the lineup by 2022. The company reports it has equipped more than 10 million vehicles in the U.S. with Honda Sensing since the system’s introduction. Every 2026 Honda, including the Passport, ships with Honda Sensing as standard equipment. The suite includes Collision Mitigation Braking with pedestrian detection, forward collision warning, road departure mitigation with lane departure warning, lane keeping assist, and adaptive cruise control.
The availability of Honda Sensing in used inventory matters because young drivers are statistically the riskiest drivers on the road. Nearly one-third of annual U.S. traffic fatalities involve drivers under 25. Research cited by Honda shows that risky behavior, including distracted driving, contributes to almost half of traffic fatalities nationwide. A used 2014 Civic with Honda Sensing delivers collision-mitigation technology at a price point accessible to first-time buyers, who are also the buyers most likely to need it.
IIHS and Consumer Reports produce the annual teen-vehicle list jointly. The organizations divide used recommendations into two tiers: Best Choices and Good Choices. The updated 2026 list includes 74 used vehicles priced at $10,000 or less and another 48 models with automatic emergency braking and highly rated headlights available for under $20,000. The Civic and Accord appear in both the Best Choices tier and the more affordable Good Choices tier, depending on model year and condition.
Honda’s teen-focused safety work extends beyond vehicle design. The company’s Safety Driven initiative, launched in October 2023 in partnership with Discovery Education, has reached more than 250,000 students in grades 3 through 12. The program includes a virtual field trip to Honda’s crash-test facility in Raymond, Ohio, and the driving simulation lab at Ohio State University. More than one million students have participated in the Safety Driven program to date.
The underlying strategy is Honda’s stated goal of zero traffic fatalities involving Honda motorcycles and automobiles by 2050. The company frames the effort as a three-domain approach: advancing technology, modifying driver behavior through education, and working with government and industry partners to improve the traffic safety ecosystem. Honda operates crash-test facilities in Ohio and Japan and has pioneered work in crashworthiness, collision compatibility, and pedestrian safety. The company’s active-safety and driver-assistance systems, sold under the Honda Sensing and AcuraWatch brands, are now installed on more than 9.5 million vehicles on U.S. roads.
The IIHS and Consumer Reports recommendations land at a moment when the used-car market is the primary point of entry for young drivers, and the spread of advanced safety systems into used inventory determines how many of those drivers have access to collision-avoidance technology. Honda’s decision to standardize Honda Sensing early means the safety tech is showing up in affordable used models now, not five years from now.
Source: Honda. Images courtesy of Honda.
