Two battery-electric vehicles were among the 12 small cars the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently subjected to its tough small-overlap front crash testing, and the Chevrolet Volt performed well enough to earn a 2014 Top Safety Pick+ award.
by Staff
August 4, 2014
1 min to read
The IIHS gave Volt an "acceptable" rating in the small-overlap test, noting that driver space "was maintained reasonably well, and data taken from the dummy indicate a low risk of significant injuries." Photo: IIHS
Two battery-electric vehicles were among the 12 small cars the Insurance Insititute for Highway Safety recently subjected to its tough small-overlap front crash testing, and the Chevrolet Volt performed well enough to garner a 2014 Top Safety Pick+ award.
The Volt received an "acceptable" rating on the test, in which only 25 percent of a car's front strikes a barrier.
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The Volt's optional forward collision warning system boosted it to the Top Safety Pick+ award. Of the 12 cars studied, only the Mini Cooper Countryman scored a "good" rating on the small-overlap test.
The other battery-electric tested, the Nissan LEAF, scored a "poor" rating in the small-overlap testing, which the IIHS has conducted since 2012. The Volt and LEAF both scored well in their last crash tests in 2011, before the introduction of the small-overlap test.
Taking into account the results on the small-overlap test, the Mini Cooper Countryman, Ford C-Max Hybrid, Mitsubishi Lancer, and the Scion FR-S and its twin the Subaru BRZ all qualified for Top Safety Pick, the institute's second-highest award. These models missed the "plus" award because they don't have an available front-crash prevention system.
For more on the small-car tests, visit our sister site, AutomotiveFleet.com.
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