The passenger compartment of the C-MAX remained stable in the frontal offset test.  Dummy readings indicated good protection of the knees and femurs of the driver and passenger.  Ford demonstrated that a similar level of protection would be provided to occupants of different sizes and to those sat in different positions.  Protection was good for all critical body areas of the passenger dummy in this test.  In the full-width rigid barrier test, the pelvis of the driver dummy slipped beneath the lap section of the seatbelt and protection of this area was rated as poor.  Dummy readings of chest compression indicated marginal protection.  For the rear passenger dummy, a combination of chest compression and high shoulder belt load indicated poor chest protection, and that of the neck was rated as marginal.  In the side barrier test, protection of all critical body areas was good and the C-MAX scored maximum points in this test.  In the more severe side pole impact, protection of the chest was rated as marginal, based on dummy readings of rib compression.  In that test, the sliding door unlatched at the front, creating a gap between the door and the car body, and the score was penalised for this.  Tests on the front seats and head restraints demonstrated good protection against whiplash injury in the event of a rear-end collision.  A geometric assessment of the rear seats indicated marginal whiplash protection.  Cars from VIN WF0WXXGCEWHE77742 have a standard-fit autonomous emergency braking system.  In tests of its functionality at the low speeds at which many whiplash injuries are caused, the system performed adequately.

In the frontal offset test, readings of neck tension indicated poor protection of this part of the body for the 10-year dummy and marginal protection for the 6-year dummy.  In the side barrier test, protection of all critical body areas was good.  The front passenger airbag can be disabled in cars fitted with an optional cut-off switch, to allow a rearward-facing child restraint to be used in that seating position.  As this switch is not standard equipment, no points are awarded in this assessment and the installation check of rearward-facing restraints is deemed a fail.  ISOFIX and i-Size compatible anchorages are available only on the second row outboard seats.

The protection provided to the head of a struck pedestrian was predominantly adequate or marginal.  Protection of pedestrians' legs by the bumper was mostly good but weak in places, and that of the pelvis was also generally good but with some poor results.

The C-MAX has a seatbelt reminder system for the front seats only.  It also has, as standard, a driver-set speed limiter.