Front impact
The i30 did not achieve the minimum points needed in frontal impact for a five star adult occupant rating, despite scoring enough points overall. The driver dummy's right knee indicated that there had been potentially injurious relative movement between the femur and the tibia. This, combined with penalties for structures in the dashboard which could injure occupants' knees and femurs, gave an overall rating of 'weak' for protection of that body region. The passenger compartment remained stable during the impact.

Child-protection
The passenger airbag can be disabled to allow a rearward facing child restraint to be used in that seating position. However, information provided to the driver about the status of the airbag is not sufficiently clear. The label warning of the dangers of using a rearward facing child restraint without first disabling the airbag was not clear and was visible only when the passenger's sun visor was stowed. The presence of ISOFIX anchorages in the rear seats was not clearly marked.

Pedestrian protection
Protection for the head of a struck child was predominantly fair. However, protection of adults' heads was poor, as was the protection offered by the front edge of the bonnet.