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Electric car crash test

December 26, 2007

And yes, it crumples like a tin can. There is a lot more to designing a usable car then having it go 90 miles before needing an 8 hour recharge. And yes, the same people that howl that we need electric cars NOW will be the first one to sue when that very same electric car allows their loved one (or favorite pet) to die. Don’t blame me. I am just the messenger.

Now as a former auto engineer that has witnessed crash tests first hand, there are a few things that need to be pointed out. First off, crumpling is the every best thing for a crash. It means the car is absorbing energy and reducing the deceleration felt by the passengers. In this test the hood did not slice into the windshield, which is very good, but the windshield got penetrated by the concrete block, which is very bad. Having the driver door fly open is probably a failure under the safety codes but the important factor is what happened to the footwells. If they got crushed then the passengers are severely hurt. If there was some integrity kept down there then this may be a dramatic crash, but it is safer than a tidy one where everything just stops in an instant.

It is interesting that the same crowd that cheered Ralph Nader for destroying the first innovative car GM came out with are the same ones willing to give a pass to electric car people, at least until one of the opinion elite gets killed in one, that is.

Posted by Paul Rako on December 26, 2007 | Comments (7)

February 8, 2009
In response to: Electric car crash test
DH, UK commented:

The G-Wiz is classed as a quadricycle, not a car, and as such is exempt from the usual mandatory EU crash test requirements, the results of which are demonstrated above. Proper small cars need to pass the NCAP crash tests, and as there isn't room for decent crumple zones they achieve the safety standard by having very rigid frames, and so tend to bounce in a crash. But with the G-Wiz, there's no reinforced passenger cage, and the whole vehicle is the crumple zone.


February 8, 2009
In response to: Electric car crash test
rating commented:

What is the safety rating of the average electric car?


December 28, 2007
In response to: Electric car crash test
rick commented:

How about the crash test against a table? www.youtube.com/watch?v=quHzOK9chx8 I do like electric cars, but they should be a little bit safe in a crash. Most are.


December 28, 2007
In response to: Electric car crash test
Dave commented:

You are right, it''s all a hoax, Paul (who has built an electric Honda Civic) and me (who has more lithium batteries, brushles controllers and electric bicycle hub motors than Al Gore has copies of Mother Jones) have conspired with Big Oil and the Big Three (really big 2.1, since mopar is almost dead) to discredit the electric car. Using my 14 year old 200Mhz SGI Indigo2 Extreme workstation, Alias Power Animator V 8.5 and Photoshop, we crafted the fake video. The rendering alone took longer than "Toy Story" Never mind that it''s posted on Top Gear''s highly secure UK website, we hacked that as well! (slaps and greets to Clive, Cisco-rooter, and Jens Bjørnstjerne). I''m sure ILM will stop playing my demo reel in their "hall of shame" now and hire me.


December 28, 2007
In response to: Electric car crash test
Stiggle commented:

A lot of EVs seem to be based on crash tested production cars. So the important tests are how well the passenger is protected from possible battery rupture, or fire. An interesting comment above mentions a crashed car with possible trapped passengers gets sprayed by the fire department with water or maybe foam. What kind of shock protection tests will be performed?


December 28, 2007
In response to: Electric car crash test
John commented:

I am very surprised EDN would allow such a vague article to be published on such an important topic. Clearly Paul as an ax to grind.


December 26, 2007
In response to: Electric car crash test
Chris Jackson commented:

Paul, so what happened to the 'footwells'? What happened to the crash test dummy? What was the crash score? Did the air bags deploy? You give no details. It is obvious for whatever reason, you don't like this car.

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