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Chevy Volt 'acceptable,' Nissan Leaf 'poor' in new IIHS safety tests

Ford C-Max Hybrid also scored "acceptable" rating. With US Nissan Leaf sales up almost 30 percent during the first half of the year, the only thing that might be able to stop the battery-electric vehicle is a good, stiff barrier. Unfortunately, thing's aren't always pretty when that happens in the real world, according to new tests from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Things with the Chevrolet Volt extended-range plug-in are a little bit rosier, though. The two plug-in vehicles were part of a batch of a dozen vehicles that just went through the IIHS's "small overlap" test, in which the driver's side front corner of the vehicle is crashed into a rigid barrier at 40 miles per hour. Out of the dozen, only the Mini Cooper Countryman was given a "good" rating. Five vehicles, including the Volt and the Ford C-Max Hybrid, were rated "acceptable," two were "marginal" and two, including the Leaf, were "poor." Plug-in vehicles are unique in the crash-test context because of their relatively large battery sizes. In the Volt's case, the driver had a "low risk" of injury, said the IIHS. But the Leaf's crash substantially pushed back the instrument panel and steering column, creating a scenario where the driver was "likely" to sustain leg injuries. The batteries in both the Leaf and the Volt passed safety tests specifically targeted at things like thermo and electrical properties and overall integrity. "Nissan is proud of the Leaf's 'Good' rating in all other IIHS tests, a 4-star NCAP rating from NHTSA and its IIHS Top Safety Pick rating in all previous years since the car's release," the company said in an e-mail sent to AutoblogGreen. "As for the performance of the 2014 Leaf in the 'small overlap frontal test,' Nissan will continue to review these and other results from the IIHS 'small overlap frontal test' as we seek opportunities for improvement." Check out the IIHS's press release and small car crash-test video footage below. Range of ratings: Small car ratings run the gamut in challenging small overlap front test The Mini Cooper Countryman is the only small car to earn a good rating among the latest group of 12 cars subjected to the Institute's small overlap front crash test. Two electric models and a hybrid also are in the mix, with varied results. The electric-powered Chevrolet Volt (with a gasoline engine "range extender") earns an acceptable rating, while its battery-electric rival, the Nissan Leaf, earns a poor rating.

A Chevy Camaro hybrid? That's what EcoCAR3 could bring

Figuring out a way for a hybrid powertrain to co-exist with the performance expectations of a classic American muscle car is a challenge that could vex that most experienced of automotive engineers. It's a challenge, in fact, being handed to a bunch of college students. Over the next four years, students from 16 North American colleges and universities will attempt to wring fuel efficiency from a 2016 Chevy Camaro as part of EcoCAR3, an advanced-vehicle technology competition sponsored by the Department of Energy, General Motors and others. They'll be attempting to use hybrid or plug-in hybrid technology while not sacrificing the performance of the Camaro, which was selected in part because the current model achieves just 17 miles per gallon in city driving and 28 MPGs on the highway, per EPA numbers. Students will get the latest version of the vehicle to work on, one that is expected to be unveiled next month on Belle Isle in Detroit. "If we still want to produce V8 Camaros, we're going to have to look at alternative methods of propulsion," said Al Oppenheiser, the chief engineer on the Camaro. "So the ideas that these college teams come up with could very easily be adapted to a car like the Camaro." Unlike similar competitions that reward fuel efficiency in vehicles, EcoCAR seeks those gains while emphasizing cost and consumer acceptance of these vehicles. The cars shouldn't look like experiments; they should look like everyday vehicles on the road. Previous competitions have allowed the teams to use whatever powertrain they desired. This time, EcoCAR officials designed the competition to concentrate on hybrid, hybrid-electric and diesel options. Competitors won't have the option of using hydrogen fuel cells as they have in the past. Last year, a team from Colorado State built a vehicle that contained both hydrogen and electric power sources. This year's limit is a curious choice, as some automakers such as Toyota have placed heavy bets on fuel cells in recent years. General Motors also runs a fuel-cell program. With the focus on cost and practicality, however, the program officials wanted to narrow the framework of the contest. "We always have some good decisions on what to make within the scope or out of scope," said Jim Kolhoff, global director of software engineering for General Motors.

GM Recalling Another 2.7 Million Vehicles In Five Separate Campaigns

The recalls keep rolling in from General Motors, evidently keen to avoid repeating the mistakes of the ignition-switch debacle and clean house. This time they're all coming at once, with five separate recalls announced together covering approximately 2.7 million vehicles. The largest of the five actions involves over 2.4 million units of the previous-generation Chevrolet Malibu and Malibu Maxx, Pontiac G6 and Saturn Aura in order to fix brake light wiring harness, which have been found to be susceptible to corrosion. The recall is separate from the 56k Aura sedans which GM recently recalled over faulty shift cables, not to mention the previous massive recall of 1.3 million vehicles – some of them the same models – but appears to have resulted from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation that started with the G6 almost a year ago. The second-largest campaign involves the 2014 Chevy Malibu, specifically those fitted with GM's 2.5-liter engine and stop/start system, approximately 140,000 examples of which has been found to have problematic brakes. The issue does not appear to be connected to the recall of 8k Malibu and Buick LaCrosse sedans (also involving brake woes) which we reported upon last week. Four crashes have been reported in such models, but GM admits it's not yet clear if the problem was a contributing factor in the accidents. A further 112k Corvette models from the 2005-2007 model years are being called in for problems with their low-beam headlamps resulting from a flexing relay control circuit wire that's not meant to bend. GM says it is "aware of several hundred complaints" about this issue, but notes that there have been no reports of related accidents. In addition, over 19k examples of Cadillac CTS from the 2013 and 2014 model years are being recalled over windshield wipers that might not work after a jump start. Finally, GM is also bringing in 477 examples of its 2014 Chevy Silverado, Tahoe and GMC Sierra (though not the Yukon) to fix a problem with a tie rod in its steering rack. As ever, all recall repairs will be performed free of charge, and GM is now estimating that recall-related actions this quarter will result in an estimated $200-million charge against its second-quarter earnings. Read the full announcement from GM below for further details.