Top Safety Pick +

2014 Chevrolet Volt

small car / 4-door sedan

Award applies only to vehicles with optional front crash prevention

Plug-in hybrid

Crashworthiness

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

Crash avoidance & mitigation

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle
Optional system	Basic

Other available safety features

Optional lane departure warning

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 2014-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2014 Chevrolet Volt 4-door

The Chevrolet Volt was introduced in the 2011 model year. The car is a plug-in battery-electric/gasoline hybrid, featuring an electric-only mode with a range of 38 miles for 2014 models according to the EPA. After the electric-only mode ends, the gas engine kicks in to power the vehicle.

Beginning with 2014 models, the front structure was modified to improve occupant protection in small overlap frontal crashes.

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, leaving the head vulnerable to contact with forward structure. The side curtain airbag deployed and had sufficient forward coverage to protect the head from contact with side structure and outside objects.

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 maintained reasonably well.

During the crash, the dummy's head and torso barely contacted the frontal airbag before sliding off to the left. The side curtain airbag extended far enough forward toward the A-pillar to protect the head from contact with forward side structure.

The driver's space was maintained reasonably well, and risk of injuries to the dummy's legs and feet was low.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1425
Lower occupant compartment
Lower hinge pillar max (cm)	10
Footrest (cm)	8
Left toepan (cm)	5
Brake pedal (cm)	3
Parking brake (cm)
Rocker panel lateral average (cm)	1
Upper occupant compartment
Steering column	5
Upper hinge pillar max (cm)	11
Upper dash (cm)	11
Lower instrument panel (cm)	10

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1425
Head
HIC-15	101
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.4
Extension bending moment (Nm)	17
Maximum Nij	0.28
Chest maximum compression (mm)	26
Femur (kN)
Left	1.5
Right	1.9
Knee displacement (mm)
Left	3
Right	1
Knee-thigh-hip injury risk (%)
Left	0
Right	0
Maximum tibia index
Left	0.64
Right	0.76
Tibia axial force (kN)
Left	2.5
Right	2.8
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	56
Right	63

About the small overlap front test

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2011-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2011 Chevrolet Volt 4-door

The Chevrolet Volt was introduced in the 2011 model year. The car is a plug-in battery-electric/gasoline hybrid, featuring an electric-only mode with a range of 35 miles for 2011 models according to the EPA. After the electric-only mode ends, the gas engine kicks in to power the vehicle.

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

Action shot taken during the frontal offset crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained very well.

Smeared greasepaint indicates where the dummy's head contacted the side curtain airbag during rebound.

Intrusion into the driver's space was minimal, and all leg and foot injury measures were low.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEF1102
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm)	4
Left (cm)	4
Center (cm)	7
Right (cm)	7
Brake pedal (cm)	6
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm)	1
Right (cm)	1
Steering column movement
Upward (cm)	2
Rearward (cm)	-3
A-pillar rearward movement (cm)	0

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEF1102
Head
HIC-15	212
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.2
Extension bending moment (Nm)	20
Maximum Nij	0.24
Chest maximum compression (mm)	30
Legs
Femur force - left (kN)	1.2
Femur force - right (kN)	1.2
Knee displacement - left (mm)	1
Knee displacement - right (mm)	0
Maximum tibia index - left	0.44
Maximum tibia index - right	0.38
Tibia axial force - left (kN)	2.1
Tibia axial force - right (kN)	2.9
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	60
Right	70

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2011-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2011 Chevrolet Volt 4-door with front and rear head curtain airbags and front seat-mounted torso airbags

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

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 airbags.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side airbag.

Technical measurements for this test

Test ID	CES1104
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm)	-14.0
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CES1104
Head HIC-15	195
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.5
Compression (kN)	0.8
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	34
Lateral force (kN)	1.8
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	39
Average deflection (mm)	35
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.82
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.63
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	2.6
Acetabulum force (kN)	1.0
Combined force (kN)	3.3
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	0.2
L-M moment (Nm)	176
A-P moment (Nm)	39

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CES1104
Head HIC-15	287
Neck
Tension (kN)	0.2
Compression (kN)	0.5
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	19
Lateral force (kN)	1.2
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	28
Average deflection (mm)	23
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.08
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.32
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	0.4
Acetabulum force (kN)	2.9
Combined force (kN)	2.9
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	0.4
L-M moment (Nm)	111
A-P moment (Nm)	-57

About the original side crash test

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2011-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2011 Chevrolet Volt 4-door

Overall evaluation
Curb weight	3,739 lbs
Peak force	15,816 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio	4.23

About the roof strength test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Manual cloth seat

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry

Technical measurements for this test

Seat type	Manual cloth seat
Geometry
Backset (mm)	34
Distance below top of head (mm)	48
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail	Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g)	10.8
Head contact time (ms)	66
Force rating	1
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N)	31
Max neck tension (N)	714

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

Front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle

System details

Optional Forward Collision Alert

Package name

Optional Enhanced Safety Package 2

Overall evaluation

Applies to 2013-15 models

Basic

with optional equipment

This system meets the requirements for forward collision warning.
Autobrake not available.

About the original front crash prevention test