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Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

teslamotors.com

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Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#81

Post by ra88it »

OGC wrote: post #73
ra88it wrote: post #50

Elon Musk clearly writes these things himself. That, or he's got a bunch of other folks like him working at Tesla. Either way, it's exciting times. It's fun to be inspired by a company. To find something that keeps getting better as it unfolds...

> Elon Musk clearly writes these things himself. What the fuck? Get a grip, PR is _an_ industry.

You're right - that phrasing is sloppy. I'm sure there's a kick-ass PR team behind this.

But it smells different than normal PR. It actually contains surprises and a conversational tone and it reminds me of Musk himself. Giving an interview, for instance.

This could be me projecting onto it, or maybe Musk really does drive PR more than you'd expect for a company at this stage. Or maybe his team is able to pull this off on their own. Either way it's fun to watch.

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#82

Post by ricardobeat »

Lagged2Death wrote: post #74
callmeed wrote: post #30

If you're curious, like I was, about the side pole test, here's a video of the Tesla: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBvH3lysmJA Here's a Prius for comparison (4 stars): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc0uUx2T37k

That's a Prius C, the new super-small one based on the Yaris chassis. Given its ultra-low-budget roots, four stars is actually really impressive. Yeah, the Tesla is better, but it's a newer, heavier, and far more expensive design. It should be better.

That fallacy is debunked by every sports car ever.

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#84

Post by axylone »

RomP wrote: post #22

This is simply unkind to the competition (and to the poles alike): "Tesla achieved this outcome by nesting multiple deep aluminum extrusions in the side rail of the car that absorb the impact energy (a similar approach was used by the Apollo Lunar Lander) and transfer load to the rest of the vehicle. This causes the pole to be either sheared off or to stop the car before the pole hits an occupant." There's winning an…

Here's the video of the Tesla pole test: http://youtu.be/_Al3IUHt9Wc?t=32s

Honda Accord for comparison: http://youtu.be/ycntFFUfGkU?t=30s

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#86

Post by kirse »

I'm sorry, but as a car enthusiast who spent much of his younger years devouring every ounce of Road&Track/Car&Driver mags, the phrase "any car ever tested" is a bit over the top... I'm almost positive the McLaren F1 (a car 20 years older) fared better than the Tesla in safety testing and was capable of being driven away after the testing finished...

F1 @ 30mph: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v482/Peloton25/McLaren%20F...

F1 @ 40mph: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUPq760LC00

I'm more than willing to acknowledge Tesla has fantastic results, especially for the price... but that top spot still belongs to my childhood automotive idol. ;)

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#87

Post by btilly »

dave1619 wrote: post #6

Elon has mentioned how much they prioritized safety in designing the Model S. I'm glad to hear that their efforts have paid off. This is great news for Tesla as it opens their market even larger as the car can appeal to those seeking safety and not just performance or lower carbon footprint.

Indeed. I read the article, and immediately sent it to my not particularly technically inclined, but very safety conscious sister.

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#88

Post by sliverstorm »

bobbles wrote: post #35
RomP wrote: post #22

This is simply unkind to the competition (and to the poles alike): "Tesla achieved this outcome by nesting multiple deep aluminum extrusions in the side rail of the car that absorb the impact energy (a similar approach was used by the Apollo Lunar Lander) and transfer load to the rest of the vehicle. This causes the pole to be either sheared off or to stop the car before the pole hits an occupant." There's winning an…

Is there some kind of diagram that explains how this works? I can't really see how this works just by imagining it.

It sounds like it's a special band running around the car, made of multiple layers of aluminum with space in between each layer. The layers crumple and transfer impact across the side of the car like a ski resting on soft snow.

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#89

Post by btilly »

kirse wrote: post #86

I'm sorry, but as a car enthusiast who spent much of his younger years devouring every ounce of Road&Track/Car&Driver mags, the phrase "any car ever tested" is a bit over the top... I'm almost positive the McLaren F1 (a car 20 years older) fared better than the Tesla in safety testing and was capable of being driven away after the testing finished... F1 @ 30mph: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v482/Peloton25/McLare…

The article notes that the testing standards were changed substantially in 2011, in ways that makes them much harder to pass.

The McLaren F1 might still be much safer, but it did not go through the same testing procedures.

Re: Tesla Model S achieves best safety rating of any car ever tested

#90

Post by sliverstorm »

ricardobeat wrote: post #82
Lagged2Death wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a Prius C, the new super-small one based on the Yaris chassis. Given its ultra-low-budget roots, four stars is actually really impressive. Yeah, the Tesla is better, but it's a newer, heavier, and far more expensive design. It should be better.

That fallacy is debunked by every sports car ever.

Sports cars have always made sacrifices in this regard. The first being simply that real sports cars are half the size of a modern saloon, which gives much less room for crumpling.
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