For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Mercedes EQB 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 Hyundai Nexo doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.
The EQB’s optional pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Nexo doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.
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 EQB are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Nexo doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
The Mercedes EQB has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Nexo doesn’t offer knee airbags.
The EQB offers an optional Post Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Nexo 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 EQB has a standard Maneuvering Brake Function that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Nexo doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.
The EQB offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Nexo doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.
Earlier warning of stopped traffic, traffic signals, dangerous road conditions, weather, or accidents, can keep driver's safer and prevent crashes. The EQB offers optional Car-to-X Communication, a system that seamlessly communicates important warnings to the driver about impending danger, if they're available. The Nexo doesn’t offer a system that can receive automated systems from infrastructure or other vehicles.
Both the EQB and the Nexo 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available lane departure warning systems and around view monitors.
The Mercedes EQB weighs 535 to 838 pounds more than the Hyundai Nexo. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.