Yaris DPL 2011: Designed to meet the highest active, passive and pedestrian impact safety standards

As with its predecessors, the new Yaris had been designed to offer the highest levels of active, passive and pedestrian impact safety performance, with the aim of achieving a maximum, 5-star Euro NCAP 2011 safety assessment rating.

The new Yaris has a lightweight yet high rigidity, impact-absorbing body shell of which some 50% by weight is fabricated in high tensile steel. The body has been designed to efficiently disperse front, side and rear collision energy, helping to reduce cabin deformation.

In cases of frontal collision, cabin deformation is suppressed by the absorption and dispersion of impact loads from the front bumper through the front side members, A pillars, rocker panel and underbody structure.

Three specific measures have been adopted to improve side impact performance: High-tensile steel is used for the outer side of the B pillars, roof rails and rockers, and for the upper B pillar door hinges. Bulkheads have been installed inside the rockers to ensure efficient impact load transfer and suppress rocker breakage. And impact energy-absorbing beams have been located within the door structure to mitigate impact force.

To the rear, bumper reinforcements and a crash box absorb the collision energy of a rear impact.

Pedestrian protection performance

The Yaris incorporates numerous features to maximise its pedestrian protection performance. Energy absorbing materials located on the leading edge of the front bumper reinforcement and the bottom end of the bumper help reduce impact energy directed at a pedestrian's legs.

An energy absorbing, pantograph bonnet structure incorporates a crushable cowl louver at its rear edge. The front wings incorporate an impact absorbing installation bracket structure. A low-impact bonnet hinge structure prevents the hinge arm from impacting the body in a collision, and the wiper pivot is mounted on a detachable structure.

Seven SRS airbags

The new Yaris may be equipped with up to seven SRS airbags driver and front passenger airbags, a driver's knee airbag, front side airbags and full-length side curtain shield airbags.

The front passenger side airbag is now fitted with two chambers to offer improved protection. It features larger volume cushions (thorax/abdomen 8 litres, pelvis 4.5 litres) and staggered deployment timing.

The pelvis bag inflates to a higher peak pressure to move the seat occupant out of the impact zone, applying force where body strength is highest. The thorax/abdomen bag inflates fractionally earlier and at a lower speed, tailoring force characteristics to the occupant's thorax and abdomen.

All front and rear seats feature three-point, ELR (Emergency Locking Retractor) seatbelts. The ELR is designed to lock up the seatbelt when excessive load is applied over a preset value. Driver and front passenger seatbelts further benefit from a pre-tensioner and force limiter function. During a collision, the force limiter fractionally reduces seatbelt tension to lower occupant chest impact forces.

The new Yaris is fitted with ISOFIX mountings to ensure the easy and safe installation of child seats. The attachments take the form of two pairs of brackets located at the base of the rear seat squabs. In addition, CRS top tether anchor bars have been fitted to the rear seatback frames for the securing of child seats.

WIL seats

The Yaris is fitted with Whiplash Injury Lessening (WIL) front seats to reduce whiplash injuries during rear end collisions. The revised WIL system features stronger seat frames to absorb higher impact velocities, and a refined head restraint shape to offer a better balance of comfort and protection.

Should a rear impact of sufficient velocity occur, the seat structure allows the occupant's upper body to sink backwards, matching the movement of the upper body to that of the head to reduce the risk of a whiplash injury.

ABS, EBD, BA, TRC and VSC Active Safety Systems 

The new Yaris may be fitted with a comprehensive range of active safety systems, including an Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist (BA), Traction Control (TRC) and Vehicle Stability Control (VSC).

EBD works with ABS to ensure that the most effective brake force is applied to each wheel, according to road conditions. By preventing the wheels from locking, EBD helps to maintain sure-footed stability during cornering and braking.

BA identifies the need for, and applies, additional braking force if the driver fails to apply sufficient force during emergency braking, or releases brake pressure too soon.

TRC monitors and controls the amount of power that is applied to the road through the car's wheels. If the system detects that one or more wheels is about to lose traction it instantly determines the best way to restore traction to that wheel, either by decreasing the power being sent to the wheel that is about to spin or, in more extreme cases, momentarily braking the wheel until it regains traction.

VSC is designed to prevent loss of car control when entering a corner too fast or in slippery conditions which might lead to a skid. Via sensors monitoring car body rotation, wheel speed and brake pressure, the system assesses vehicle stability and the proximity of either an understeer or oversteer slide.

The system restores stability by automatically adjusting engine output and applying smoothly modulated braking to the appropriate wheel individually, helping the driver to restore vehicle stability.