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 UX 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.
The Lexus UX 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 Eclipse Cross doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.
Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the UX deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The UX’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Eclipse Cross’ side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.
The UX has standard Whiplash Injury Lessening Front Seatbacks, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash Injury Lessening Front Seatbacks system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Eclipse Cross doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
The UX 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 Eclipse Cross 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 UX offers an optional Parking Support Brake 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.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the UX has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Eclipse Cross SE/SEL offers Rear Cross Traffic Alert.
The UX’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 UX and the Eclipse Cross have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, 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, available all wheel drive and rear parking sensors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Lexus UX is safer than the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross:
|
UX |
Eclipse Cross |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
116 |
248 |
Neck Injury Risk |
33% |
38.7% |
Neck Stress |
371 lbs. |
424 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
17 lbs. |
33 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
Chest Compression |
.7 inches |
.7 inches |
Neck Injury Risk |
36% |
39.7% |
Neck Stress |
163 lbs. |
182 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 and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Lexus UX is safer than the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross:
|
UX |
Eclipse Cross |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
52 |
145 |
Abdominal Force |
149 lbs. |
154 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
96 |
162 |
Spine Acceleration |
46 G’s |
55 G’s |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
12 inches |
14 inches |
HIC |
292 |
358 |
Spine Acceleration |
44 G’s |
44 G’s |
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 Lexus UX is much safer than the Eclipse Cross:
|
UX |
Eclipse Cross |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
POOR |
Structure |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Neck Tension |
223 lbs. |
268 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
POOR |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.02 in |
2.28 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
7 MPH |
10 MPH |
Pelvis |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Pelvis Force |
892 lbs. |
1294 lbs. |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head Injury Criterion |
150 |
166 |
Neck Compression |
67 lbs. |
134 lbs. |
Torso |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Shoulder Deflection |
1.69 in |
1.73 in |
Torso Max Deflection |
1.46 in |
2.01 in |
Torso Deflection Rate |
6 MPH |
11 MPH |
Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the UX is 4.5% less likely to roll over than the Eclipse Cross.
The Lexus UX achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2024 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The Eclipse Cross is not a “Top Safety Pick” for 2024.