Used car safety, rank #168 of 181
Chevrolet Sonic Safety Rating (2017-20)
Real IIHS driver death rates for the 2017-20 Chevrolet Sonic, a small car, compared with its class and with the current model.
IIHS 2023 edition Β· 2018β2021 crashes. Results apply only to the model years and drivetrain shown. This is the historical edition. See the July 2026 release for newer used cars.
The 2017-20 Chevrolet Sonic has an IIHS driver death rate of 107 per million registered vehicle years against a small cars average of 60.5, which is 77% above the class average. That places it #168 of 181 used vehicles with a safety score of 9.7/100.
What the Chevrolet Sonic death rate means
At 107 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, the Chevrolet Sonic is 77% worse than the small cars average of 60.5. The 95% confidence interval is 50 to 164, which overlaps the class average, so some of the gap may be chance.
The other-driver death rate of 82 measures the opposite risk: how many drivers of other vehicles died in crashes with a Chevrolet Sonic. It is no higher than the Chevrolet Sonic's own driver death rate. Remember that death rates describe vehicles and their drivers together: IIHS adjusts for driver age and gender, but not for where or how carefully people drive. Our score weights this model's own rate at 70% and its class at 30%; see how we rank used cars.
Compared with similar used cars
The safest small cars in the IIHS study, by our score, with the Chevrolet Sonic highlighted. It ranks 9 of the 9 shown; the class leader is the Chevrolet Bolt at a death rate of 8.
| Vehicle | Years | Death rate | Score | Reliability | Used price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet Bolt | 2017-20 | 8 (0 to 19) | 65.3 | n/a | n/a |
| Toyota Prius Prime | 2017-20 | 23 (0 to 45) | 52.5 | n/a | n/a |
| Subaru WRX | 2017-20 | 38 (19 to 58) | 34.2 | n/a | n/a |
| Toyota Prius | 2017-20 | 45 (23 to 67) | 29.6 | n/a | n/a |
| Subaru Impreza sedan | 2017-20 | 46 (18 to 74) | 28.4 | n/a | n/a |
| Honda Civic | 2019-20 | 49 (29 to 69) | 26.5 | n/a | n/a |
| Toyota Corolla | 2020 | 58 (31 to 86) | 19.5 | n/a | n/a |
| Honda Civic hatchback | 2019-20 | 78 (26 to 130) | 13.6 | n/a | n/a |
| Chevrolet Sonic (this page) | 2017-20 | 107 (50 to 164) | 9.7 | n/a | n/a |
Class average for small cars: 60.5 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years.
Safety recalls for the Chevrolet Sonic
We do not have a verified NHTSA recall lookup for this nameplate and model year. Check by VIN rather than treating that as a clean record.
Recall campaigns from the NHTSA recalls database, retrieved 2026-09-16. A campaign covers a range of build dates, not every car of the model year, and IIHS reports this nameplate across several years while these results are for one year. Confirm against the VIN. Recalls do not affect the death rate on this page.
Chevrolet Sonic: Common Questions
Is the Chevrolet Sonic a safe car?
Not on this measure: its drivers died at a higher rate than its class average. IIHS recorded a driver death rate of 107 per million registered vehicle years for the 2017-20 Chevrolet Sonic, 77% above the class average (60.5 for small cars). That earns a used-car safety score of 9.7 out of 100 and rank #168 of 181 used vehicles.
What is the Chevrolet Sonic driver death rate?
107 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, with a 95% confidence interval of 50 to 164. Drivers of other vehicles that collided with a Chevrolet Sonic died at a rate of 82 per million. Source: IIHS driver death rates by make and model, covering 2017-20 models.
How does the Chevrolet Sonic compare with other small cars?
The small cars class averages 60.5 driver deaths per million; the Chevrolet Sonic sits at 107. Among the 9 small cars compared above it ranks 9 by safety score; the top of that group is the Chevrolet Bolt with a death rate of 8.