For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Solterra have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Chevrolet Bolt EUV doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.
The Solterra has a standard Secondary Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Bolt EUV doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Solterra has a standard Parking Support Brake that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Bolt EUV doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.
The Solterra has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Bolt EUV doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Solterra’s standard Downhill Assist Control allows you to creep down safely. The Bolt EUV doesn’t offer Downhill Assist Control.
The Solterra has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Bolt EUV’s blind spot costs extra.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Solterra has standard rear cross-path warning, helping the driver avoid collisions. Chevrolet charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Bolt EUV.
The Solterra’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 Bolt EUV doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the Solterra and the Bolt EUV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available around view monitors.
The Subaru Solterra weighs 650 to 825 pounds more than the Chevrolet Bolt EUV. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.
For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Solterra its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Bolt EUV has not been tested, yet.