Top Safety Pick

2012 Toyota Prius v

midsize car / 4-door wagon

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Evaluation criteria	Rating
Small overlap front: driver-side
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Roof strength
Head restraints & seats

Key

G
Good
A
Acceptable
M
Marginal
P
Poor

Superior
Advanced
Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Small overlap front: driver-side

Rating applies to 2012-14 models

Tested vehicle: 2012 Toyota Prius v Two wagon

The Toyota Prius v wagon was introduced in the 2012 model year. It is derived from the Toyota Prius but is longer and taller to provide more rear seat room and cargo-carrying capacity.

Evaluation criteria	Rating

Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Hip/thigh
Lower leg/foot
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics The dummy’s head barely contacted the frontal airbag before sliding off the left side as the steering column moved 13 cm to the right. Additionally, the seat belt allowed excessive forward excursion of the dummy’s head and torso, permitting the head to hit the instrument panel. The side curtain airbag deployed too late during the crash, dropping onto the back of the head and pushing it outboard of the inflating curtain, leaving the dummy's head vulnerable to contact with side structure and outside objects. The side torso airbag deployed.

Action shot taken during the small overlap frontal crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the door frame, steering wheel, and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was not maintained well.

During the crash, the dummy's head barely contacted the frontal airbag before sliding off to the left, and the seat belt allowed the dummy to move too far forward, with the head hitting the instrument panel. The side curtain airbag deployed too late to offer any head protection, leaving the dummy's head exposed to contact with side structure and outside objects.

Intrusion into the occupant compartment was extensive as the left front wheel was forced rearward and inward into the door hinge pillar, driver footwell, and instrument panel during the crash. Left hip and left lower leg injury risk was high.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1217
Lower occupant compartment
Lower hinge pillar max (cm)	35
Footrest (cm)	18
Left toepan (cm)	9
Brake pedal (cm)	7
Parking brake (cm)	20
Rocker panel lateral average (cm)	10
Upper occupant compartment
Steering column	7
Upper hinge pillar max (cm)	19
Upper dash (cm)	22
Lower instrument panel (cm)	17

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1217
Head
HIC-15	138
Peak gs at hard contact	42
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.7
Extension bending moment (Nm)	15
Maximum Nij	0.36
Chest maximum compression (mm)	20
Femur (kN)
Left	7.2
Right	1.8
Knee displacement (mm)
Left	9
Right	2
Knee-thigh-hip injury risk (%)
Left	45
Right	0
Maximum tibia index
Left	1.36
Right	0.81
Tibia axial force (kN)
Left	3.1
Right	1.0
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	91
Right	64

About the small overlap front test

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2012-17 models

Tested vehicle: 2012 Toyota Prius v wagon

The Toyota Prius v wagon was introduced in the 2012 model year. It is derived from the Toyota Prius but is longer and taller to provide more rear seat room and cargo-carrying capacity. Moderate overlap frontal ratings are assigned by the Institute based on a test conducted by Toyota.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTF1107
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm)	3
Left (cm)	7
Center (cm)	14
Right (cm)	6
Brake pedal (cm)	6
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm)	0
Right (cm)	0
Steering column movement
Upward (cm)	0
Rearward (cm)	3
A-pillar rearward movement (cm)	2

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTF1107
Head
HIC-15	210
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.2
Extension bending moment (Nm)	20
Maximum Nij	0.28
Chest maximum compression (mm)	24
Legs
Femur force - left (kN)	1.9
Femur force - right (kN)	2.3
Knee displacement - left (mm)	2
Knee displacement - right (mm)	3
Maximum tibia index - left	0.39
Maximum tibia index - right	0.43
Tibia axial force - left (kN)	2.5
Tibia axial force - right (kN)	3.7
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	66
Right	65

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2012 models

Tested vehicle: 2012 Toyota Prius v Three wagon with standard front and rear head curtain airbags and standard front seat-mounted torso airbags

The Toyota Prius v wagon was introduced in the 2012 model year. It is derived from the Toyota Prius but is longer and taller to provide more rear seat room and cargo-carrying capacity.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection The dummy's head pushed past the side curtain airbag and was hit by the window sill of the passenger door. This impact did not produce high head injury measures, but the head protection is inadequate. The side airbag didn’t unfurl completely during deployment, which contributed to the head moving outward excessively.

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the crash test.

View of the vehicle after the crash with doors removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side curtain airbag.

The side curtain airbag did not unfurl completely, and smeared greasepaint shows that the dummy's head was hit by the window sill (photo taken before rear door removed).

Technical measurements for this test

Test ID	CES1117
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm)	-10.5
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CES1117
Head HIC-15	317
Neck
Tension (kN)	0.8
Compression (kN)	0.6
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	33
Lateral force (kN)	2.2
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	30
Average deflection (mm)	21
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	2.81
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.38
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	2.5
Acetabulum force (kN)	1.3
Combined force (kN)	3.6
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	0.9
L-M moment (Nm)	32
A-P moment (Nm)	32

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CES1117
Head HIC-15	57
Neck
Tension (kN)	0.4
Compression (kN)	0.4
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	30
Lateral force (kN)	1.3
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	31
Average deflection (mm)	15
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.36
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.49
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	0.6
Acetabulum force (kN)	2.8
Combined force (kN)	3.1
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	1.1
L-M moment (Nm)	107
A-P moment (Nm)	22

About the original side crash test

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2012-17 models

Tested vehicle: 2012 Toyota Prius v Two wagon

Overall evaluation
Curb weight	3,274 lbs
Peak force	14,180 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio	4.33

About the roof strength test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Manual cloth seats

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry

Technical measurements for this test

Seat type	Manual cloth seats
Geometry
Backset (mm)	27
Distance below top of head (mm)	32
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail	Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g)	12.3
Head contact time (ms)	60
Force rating	1
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N)	0
Max neck tension (N)	407

About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.