For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Infiniti QX60 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 Chevrolet Traverse doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.
The QX60 Sensory/Autograph’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Traverse doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.
For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Infiniti QX60 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 Traverse doesn’t offer height-adjustable front seat belts.
The Infiniti QX60 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Traverse doesn’t offer knee airbags.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The QX60 has standard Rear Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Traverse doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.
The QX60 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 Traverse’s blind spot costs extra.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the QX60 has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Chevrolet charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Traverse.
The QX60 Luxe/Sensory/Autograph’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 Traverse doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the QX60 and the Traverse have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, front seat center airbag, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Infiniti QX60 is safer than the Chevrolet Traverse:
|
QX60 |
Traverse |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
312 |
333 |
Chest Compression |
.6 inches |
.9 inches |
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 and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Infiniti QX60 is safer than the Chevrolet Traverse:
|
QX60 |
Traverse |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Chest Movement |
.9 inches |
.9 inches |
Abdominal Force |
138 lbs. |
161 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
88 |
134 |
Spine Acceleration |
33 G’s |
39 G’s |
Hip Force |
461 lbs. |
716 lbs. |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
14 inches |
14 inches |
HIC |
234 |
251 |
Hip Force |
466 lbs. |
554 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 Infiniti QX60 is safer than the Traverse:
|
QX60 |
Traverse |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Structure |
ACCEPTABLE |
MARGINAL |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
125 |
141 |
Neck Tension |
268 lbs. |
446 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
22 lbs. |
45 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Shoulder Deflection |
.63 in |
1.3 in |
Shoulder Force |
156 lbs. |
312 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
.94 in |
1.5 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
5 MPH |
6 MPH |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
65 |
189 |
Neck Tension |
89 lbs. |
134 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
67 lbs. |
201 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Shoulder Deflection |
.55 in |
1.02 in |
Shoulder Force |
178 lbs. |
290 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
.75 in |
1.22 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
4 MPH |
10 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Pelvis Force |
580 lbs. |
848 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 QX60 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 50 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Traverse last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.