That many volvos have the safety of pedestrians and cyclists in mind in the design. Most of it of course to avoid colliding in the first place (such as cyclist and pedestrian detection systems), but the design has elements that protects pedestrians in a collision too, such as soft elements in the front of the car, a special hood and external airbag for pedestrians, and so on. http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2013-02/volvos-new-airbag...