For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Subaru WRX 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 Ford Mustang doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.
The WRX has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Mustang doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The WRX Limited Auto/GT has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Mustang doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.
The WRX has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Mustang doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.
Both the WRX and the Mustang have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.
A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Subaru WRX is safer than the Mustang Fastback:
|
WRX |
Mustang |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Restraints |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Head Neck Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head injury index |
110 |
147 |
Peak Head Forces |
0 G’s |
0 G’s |
Steering Column Movement Rearward |
0 cm |
5 cm |
Chest Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Hip & Thigh Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Femur Force R/L |
.9/.8 kN |
2.8/1.4 kN |
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L |
0%/0% |
0%/0% |
Lower Leg Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Tibia index R/L |
.62/.57 |
.74/.66 |
The Subaru WRX 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 Mustang is not a “Top Safety Pick” for 2024.