2011 Toyota Prius

small car / 4-door hatchback

Award applies only to vehicles built after December 2010

2011 Toyota Prius 4-door hatchback

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Roof strength
Head restraints & seats

Key

  • G
    Good
  • A
    Acceptable
  • M
    Marginal
  • P
    Poor
  • Superior
  • Advanced
  • Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2010-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2010 Toyota Prius 4-door

The Toyota Prius was redesigned for the 2010 model year. As in earlier models, the Prius is a hybrid with both a gasoline engine and electric motor. A Prius Plug-in model was introduced in the 2012 model year. This variant also uses a gasoline engine and electric motor, but the motor's lithium-ion battery can be charged by connecting it with an electrical cord to a standard household outlet. The Plug-in is designed to operate primarily in electric mode for 11 miles from a full charge. Beyond this range, it operates in the same manner as the standard Prius.

Two tests of the Prius were conducted, the first by Toyota of a 2010 Prius as part of frontal crash test verification and the second by the Institute of a 2012 Prius Plug-in. Ratings are based on both tests and apply to both Prius variants. Vehicle specifications are provided for the 2010 Prius from the Toyota test and photos are provided from the Institute's test of the 2012 Prius Plug-in.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the Institute's moderate offset frontal crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained very well (Institute test car shown).

Dummy movement was well controlled in both tests. During rebound in the Institute's test, the dummy's head hit the roof rail, as indicated by smeared greasepaint.

In both tests, intrusion into the driver's space was minimal, and all leg and foot injury measures were low (the yellow strip is marking tape that came off the instrument panel during the Institute's test).

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID VTF0901 CEF1205
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm) 2 6
Left (cm) 8 9
Center (cm) 12 17
Right (cm) 4 9
Brake pedal (cm) 3 6
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm) 3 4
Right (cm) 3 3
Steering column movement
Upward (cm) -2 -3
Rearward (cm) 3 0
A-pillar rearward movement (cm) 2 2

Driver injury measures

Test ID VTF0901 CEF1205
Head
HIC-15 443 250
Peak gs at hard contact 84 65
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.5 0.9
Extension bending moment (Nm) 16 38
Maximum Nij 0.29 0.35
Chest maximum compression (mm) 29 27
Legs
Femur force - left (kN) 1.5 1.0
Femur force - right (kN) 1.3 1.1
Knee displacement - left (mm) 1 1
Knee displacement - right (mm) 1 0
Maximum tibia index - left 0.47 0.38
Maximum tibia index - right 0.54 0.41
Tibia axial force - left (kN) 2.8 1.8
Tibia axial force - right (kN) 2.7 3.0
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 62 59
Right 53 68

How the moderate overlap front test is conducted

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2010-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2010 Toyota Prius 4-door with standard front and rear head curtain airbags and standard front seat-mounted torso airbags

The Toyota Prius was redesigned for the 2010 model year. As in earlier models, the Prius is a hybrid with both a gasoline engine and electric motor. A Prius Plug-in model was introduced in the 2012 model year. This variant also uses a gasoline engine and electric motor, but the motor's lithium-ion battery can be charged by connecting it with an electrical cord to a standard household outlet. The Plug-in is designed to operate primarily in electric mode for 11 miles from a full charge. Beyond this range, it operates in the same manner as the standard Prius.

Two tests of the Prius were conducted, the first by Toyota of a 2010 Prius as part of side crash test verification and the second by the Institute of a 2012 Prius Plug-in. Ratings are based on both tests and apply to both Prius variants. Vehicle specifications are provided for the 2010 Prius from the Toyota test and photos are provided from the Institute's test of the 2012 Prius Plug-in.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the Institute's crash test.

View of the vehicle after the crash with doors removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side curtain airbag in the Institute's test.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side airbag.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID VTS0901 CES1206
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm) -11.0 -11.5
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Driver injury measures

Test ID VTS0901 CES1206
Head HIC-15 562 391
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.0 0.7
Compression (kN) 0.1 0.1
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 52 56
Lateral force (kN) 1.9 2.1
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 36 36
Average deflection (mm) 27 23
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 5.50 3.11
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.78 0.51
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 1.0 1.5
Acetabulum force (kN) 1.9 1.8
Combined force (kN) 2.6 3.1
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.9 1.1
L-M moment (Nm) 191 180
A-P moment (Nm) -118 95

Passenger injury measures

Test ID VTS0901 CES1206
Head HIC-15 190 134
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.3 0.4
Compression (kN) 1.0 0.7
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 45 44
Lateral force (kN) 1.4 1.3
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 35 37
Average deflection (mm) 23 24
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 4.50 4.44
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.69 0.82
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 0.7 0.8
Acetabulum force (kN) 2.2 1.9
Combined force (kN) 2.8 2.4
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 1.0 1.5
L-M moment (Nm) 230 231
A-P moment (Nm) 65 -38

How the side crash test is conducted

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2011-15 models built after December 2010

Tested vehicle: 2011 Toyota Prius Two 4-door

Rating applies to both the Prius (tested) and the Prius Plug-in Hybrid.

Overall evaluation
Curb weight 3,056 lbs
Peak force 12,846 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio 4.20

How the roof strength test is conducted

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Manual cloth seats AHR

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry
Technical measurements for this test
Seat type Manual cloth seats AHR
Geometry
Backset (mm) 37
Distance below top of head (mm) 34
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g) 12.6
Head contact time (ms) 62
Force rating 1
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N) 1
Max neck tension (N) 499

How the head restraint & seat test is conducted
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.