NHTSA crash tests results/videos

[bollar]

2013 Model S Recieves NHTSA 5 Star Rating in All Categories!

2011 & Newer - Search Results | Safercar -- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

You can't click through to the details yet, but the summary data is clear.

 

[MikeC]

Nice, today just keeps getting better.

 

[Johan]

It shows 5 stars on the graphics, for all the tests, but when you click the link for the "2013 Tesla Model S 5 HB RWD" it says "not rated" in all the boxes... I guess this will be up soon!

 

[AnOutsider]

Anybody else notice the momentary ripple in the roof that appears then disappears around 1:01 in the side impact video? I have no idea what is going on with the aluminium for those few seconds.

Wonder if that would be shattering glass in the pano version?

 

[T5Quad]

2013 Model S crash test video

NHTSA frontal crash:

NHTSA side crash:

The pole crash video link is broken for some unknown reason.

 

[Russell]

Wonder if that would be shattering glass in the pano version?

Now I don't want the pano roof. :-(

 

[stevezzzz]

What was up with the rear bench going to pieces like that?

I wonder if Tesla had early access to the videos and thus discovered the manufacturing error that led to the partial recall, as a result?

 

[Todd Burch]

A brief search shows the following sedans/wagons/2 doors with 5 stars in all tests:

Tesla Model S
Cadillac ATS
Audi A4 and S4
Chevy Camaro
Honda Accord 2Dr
Kia Optima 4Dr
Subaru Legacy 4dr
Volvo s60 4dr
Ford Focus BeV

I think the standards should be raised again, if only to separate the men from the boys. I'd bet money that the Model S would score higher than the other cars here, primarily because of the battery pack in the floor.

Notice: no Mercedes, no BMW, no Jag, no....

 

[Todd Burch]

And the car doesn't 'splode on impact! Take that, Broder/Peterson...

 

[austinEV]

I remember Elon saying something about how other cars with 5 star ratings got them through some appeals process. He said it would be the first 5 star rated car with no "asterisks". So there might be some detail we are missing, or such talk refers to IIHS ratings.

 

[montgom626]

Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[DaveT]

The videos are impressive. I can just picture some Mercedes/BMW owners in the U.S., Europe and China watching these videos and being tempted to get a Model S.

 

[evmile]

A brief search shows the following sedans/wagons/2 doors with 5 stars in all tests:

Tesla Model S
Cadillac ATS
Audi A4 and S4
Chevy Camaro
Honda Accord 2Dr
Kia Optima 4Dr
Subaru Legacy 4dr
Volvo s60 4dr
Ford Focus BeV

I think the standards should be raised again, if only to separate the men from the boys. I'd bet money that the Model S would score higher than the other cars here, primarily because of the battery pack in the floor.

Notice: no Mercedes, no BMW, no Jag, no....

Chevy Volt is five stars as well. The Nissan LEAF is four stars.

 

[Johan]

LOVE watching these. I'm no expert but looks extremely good! The airbag deployment in the front crash is excellent: the whole airbag is fully deployed before the doll even begins to move forward.

Only thing I didn't like was how the rear view mirror came loose during the side pole impact test and came flying through the cabin... didn't hit the driver though so I guess no points deducted for that one

 

[Zythryn]

Frankly, I was blown away that in the front crash test the windshield didn't even crack?

 

[jak]

NOOOOOOOOOOoooooo...... I just saw the destruction of 3 great cars!

 

[gg_got_a_tesla]

Yes, noticed that

- the rear view mirror came flying out; it's quite a projectile, it'd appear.
- in the front impact, from the camera angles from inside the car, what was going on with the rear bench seat? Did it come flying up?!

Amazing how that battery structure beneath didn't seem to budge an inch in that massive front impact!

 

[Johan]

Let's hope the NTHSA don't let those three crashed cars sit in a corner now for a few weeks until they self-ignite a la Volt... That would be bad PR. I think they've learnt now how to properly disassamble and dispose of the battery pack....

 

[lorih]

Let's hope the NTHSA don't let those three crashed cars sit in a corner now for a few weeks until they self-ignite a la Volt... That would be bad PR. I think they've learnt now how to properly disassamble and dispose of the battery pack....

I hope they do leave it around and watch the battery. I'm confident in the Telsa battery design. Elon has spoken a few times about the fact that they use lots of small cells thermally isolated. He says it isn't a matter of "if" a single cell will fail, it's a matter of "when". For the other car companies (and most likely the Dream Liner 787 airplanes), the failure of one battery cell leads to heat, and a chain of chemical reactions overheating the entire battery. Telsa designed it so the individual cells are smaller (i.e. less heat) and it is thermally isolated. He says that if a cell goes bad, that just means the battery will perform to a lower rating without over heating.

 

[Johan]

I hope they do leave it around and watch the battery. I'm confident in the Telsa battery design. Elon has spoken a few times about the fact that they use lots of small cells thermally isolated. He says it isn't a matter of "if" a single cell will fail, it's a matter of "when". For the other car companies (and most likely the Dream Liner 787 airplanes), the failure of one battery cell leads to heat, and a chain of chemical reactions overheating the entire battery. Telsa designed it so the individual cells are smaller (i.e. less heat) and it is thermally isolated. He says that if a cell goes bad, that just means the battery will perform to a lower rating without over heating.

I'm pretty sure Tesla has done this inhouse: severly crashed a couple of Model S's (or at least the battery packs) and then just let them sit there for a while to see that there is not thermal runaway.