The Ford Maverick 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 Santa Cruz doesn’t offer knee airbags.
The Maverick has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Santa Cruz 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.
Both the Maverick and the Santa Cruz have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Ford Maverick is safer than the Hyundai Santa Cruz:
|
|
Maverick |
Santa Cruz |
|
|
Driver |
|
| STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
| HIC |
129 |
217 |
| Neck Injury Risk |
22% |
22.8% |
| Neck Compression |
11 lbs. |
73 lbs. |
| Leg Forces (l/r) |
139/49 lbs. |
36/164 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 Ford Maverick is safer than the Hyundai Santa Cruz:
|
|
Maverick |
Santa Cruz |
|
|
Front Seat |
|
| STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
| Chest Movement |
.7 inches |
.7 inches |
| Hip Force |
200 lbs. |
246 lbs. |
|
|
Into Pole |
|
| STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
| Max Damage Depth |
13 inches |
16 inches |
| HIC |
255 |
275 |
| Spine Acceleration |
35 G’s |
40 G’s |
| Hip Force |
458 lbs. |
647 lbs. |
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 Ford Maverick is safer than the Santa Cruz:
|
|
Maverick |
Santa Cruz |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
| Structure |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
|
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
| Head/Neck |
GOOD |
GOOD |
| Torso |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
| Shoulder Force |
223 lbs. |
245 lbs. |
| Torso Max Deflection |
1.1 in |
1.42 in |
| Torso Deflection Rate |
7 MPH |
7 MPH |
| Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
|
Passenger Injury Measures |
|
| Pelvis |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
| Pelvis Force |
848 lbs. |
915 lbs. |
| Head Protection |
GOOD |
GOOD |

