For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Prius have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Honda Accord Hybrid doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.
The Prius 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 Accord Hybrid 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.
The Prius has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Accord Hybrid doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.
The Prius Limited offers an optional Panoramic View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Accord Hybrid only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.
The Prius 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. Only the Accord Hybrid EX/EX-L/Touring offers a blind spot warning system.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Prius has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert to warn the driver of approaching traffic and automatically engage the brakes to help avoid a collision. Only the Accord Hybrid EX/EX-L/Touring offers Cross Traffic Monitor and the Accord Hybrid’s Cross Traffic Monitor does not include automatic braking.
Both the Prius and the Accord Hybrid have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, 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 driver alert monitors.
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 Toyota Prius is much safer than the Accord Hybrid:
|
Prius |
Accord Hybrid |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Structure |
ACCEPTABLE |
MARGINAL |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
331 |
576 |
Head Peak Forces |
no contact |
77 G’s |
Neck Tension |
223 lbs. |
424 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
45 lbs. |
178 lbs. |
Torso |
ACCEPTABLE |
ACCEPTABLE |
Shoulder Deflection |
1.54 in |
2.13 in |
Shoulder Force |
335 lbs. |
357 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.46 in |
1.57 in |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Pelvis Force |
759 lbs. |
1138 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
246 |
279 |
Neck Tension |
45 lbs. |
223 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
134 lbs. |
156 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Shoulder Deflection |
1.42 in |
1.46 in |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.06 in |
1.69 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
5 MPH |
8 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Pelvis Force |
692 lbs. |
1004 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
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 Prius its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 36 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Accord Hybrid was last a “Top Safety Pick Plus” in 2022 but no longer qualifies.