New 2007 Chevrolet Aveo Safety Review [ 2009 , 2008 ]
Chevrolet Aveo Safety Review
Safety - 6.7 (Mediocre)
The 2007 Chevrolet Aveo has a general lack of accident avoidance and crash protection gear, even as options. Nevertheless, the Aveo receives mostly acceptable scores in government and private crash tests.
The Detroit News says "One of the first questions you have to ask is what kind of safety equipment you get...All you need to do is make a list of all the safety hardware that is not available on the '07 Aveo." Most notably, not only are side curtain airbags not standard on the Aveo, they aren't even available as an optional upgrade.
Accident Avoidance
Visibility is one the compact Chevy's safety strengths. Autoweb points out "the generous side mirrors and extensive side glass helped us see people and vehicles outside. Visibility also benefits from retractable rear headrests and relatively narrow B- and C-pillars. The A-pillars are a little too wide." But antilock brakes (ABS) do not come standard on the Aveo, an omission that Edmunds calls "astonishing." ABS is available as an option on all models, but neither electronic stability control (ESC) nor traction control is available as an option.
A larger issue raised by Automotive.com concerns the power brake assist, "which -- by the way -- cuts out under quick left-right transitions at even moderate speeds, raising questions about accident avoidance," the reviewer notes. "The same question comes up when braking in a turn, which often sends the Aveo's tail flying out a little too easily, and again when braking hard in a straight line, which coughs up enough smoke before eventually stopping that you wonder if Kumho tires might not have been the best choice. One concern with the Aveo, as with all small cars, is a collision with a larger vehicle."
Crash Protection
The Aveo has standard front and side impact air bags for the front seats -- but, as several reviewers pointed out, air bag protection is not available for rear passengers. "The biggest drawback," says MSN [is that] "the Aveo doesn't have curtain airbags -- either standard or optional -- and did worse in a government crash test rating for front-passenger protection in a frontal crash as a 2007 model than it did as a 2006."
Indeed, the 2007 Aveo performs merely adequately in crash tests. In frontal crash tests, the government gives the 2007 model a perfect 5 stars for driver safety and 4 stars for passenger safety. In side crashes, the Aveo receives 4 stars for the front seat, but only 3 for the rear seat. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) gives the Aveo a score of "Acceptable" in frontal offset tests and a more discouraging score of "Marginal" in side impact tests, including "poor" head protection for rear passengers.
