In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Tucson Hybrid are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Eclipse Cross doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Tucson Hybrid 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 Eclipse Cross doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Tucson Hybrid’s standard Downhill Brake Control allows you to creep down safely. The Eclipse Cross doesn’t offer Downhill Brake Control.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Tucson Hybrid has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Only the Eclipse Cross SE/SEL offers Rear Cross Traffic Alert and the Eclipse Cross’ Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.
The Tucson Hybrid’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 Eclipse Cross doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the Tucson Hybrid and the Eclipse Cross have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, 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 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid is safer than the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross:
|
Tucson Hybrid |
Eclipse Cross |
OVERALL STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
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 Tucson Hybrid is much safer than the Eclipse Cross:
|
Tucson Hybrid |
Eclipse Cross |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
POOR |
Structure |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
121 |
155 |
Neck Tension |
223 lbs. |
268 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
-45 lbs. |
67 lbs. |
Torso |
ACCEPTABLE |
POOR |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.34 in |
2.28 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
9 MPH |
10 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Pelvis Force |
759 lbs. |
1294 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
116 |
166 |
Neck Compression |
-134 lbs. |
134 lbs. |
Torso |
ACCEPTABLE |
MARGINAL |
Shoulder Deflection |
1.1 in |
1.73 in |
Shoulder Force |
245 lbs. |
402 lbs. |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.38 in |
2.01 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
5 MPH |
11 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Tucson Hybrid is 1.1% to 2.6% less likely to roll over than the Eclipse Cross.
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 Tucson Hybrid its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 67 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Eclipse Cross has not been fully tested, yet.