For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Hyundai Sonata are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Chevrolet Malibu doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Sonata Limited has standard Reverse Collision-Avoidance Assist that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Malibu doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.
The Sonata Limited has a standard Around View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Malibu only offers a rear monitor and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the front or sides.
The Sonata has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Malibu’s blind spot costs extra.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Sonata has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Chevrolet charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Malibu and the Malibu’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.
The Sonata’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Malibu doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the Sonata and the Malibu have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Hyundai Sonata is safer than the Chevrolet Malibu:
|
Sonata |
Malibu |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Chest Compression |
.5 inches |
.7 inches |
Neck Injury Risk |
33% |
36% |
Neck Stress |
98 lbs. |
169 lbs. |
Leg Forces (l/r) |
29/21 lbs. |
162/232 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the Hyundai Sonata is safer than the Chevrolet Malibu:
|
Sonata |
Malibu |
OVERALL STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
Chest Movement |
1 inches |
1.3 inches |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
3 Stars |
HIC |
301 |
365 |
Hip Force |
539 lbs. |
1117 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Hyundai Sonata is much safer than the Malibu:
|
Sonata |
Malibu |
Overall Evaluation |
ACCEPTABLE |
POOR |
Structure |
ACCEPTABLE |
POOR |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
POOR |
Head Injury Criterion |
195 |
1178 |
Head Peak Forces |
no contact |
142 G’s |
Neck Tension |
379 lbs. |
402 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
22 lbs. |
89 lbs. |
Torso |
ACCEPTABLE |
MARGINAL |
Shoulder Deflection |
1.54 in |
2.17 in |
Shoulder Force |
357 lbs. |
402 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.5 in |
1.77 in |
Pelvis |
ACCEPTABLE |
ACCEPTABLE |
Pelvis Force |
982 lbs. |
1049 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
111 |
335 |
Head Peak Forces |
no contact |
74 G’s |
Neck Tension |
312 lbs. |
469 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Shoulder Deflection |
.75 in |
1.93 in |
Shoulder Force |
201 lbs. |
892 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
.71 in |
1.81 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
5 MPH |
9 MPH |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Sonata the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Malibu last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.