Electric cars are safe. In any case, this is confirmed by tests conducted by the independent organization Euro NCAP, which is the standard in Europe for car safety.

But even as Euro NCAP tests become more advanced, crash tests are always conducted against static and undeformed elements. But what happens if two electric cars collide?

Mercedes posed the question and simulated a head-on collision between two zero-emission SUVs, the EQS and the EQA. Experience is also particularly interesting because it also allows realize the impact of the difference in size and weight between the two models.

The first head-on collision between two electric cars

Mercedes claims that this is the world’s first crash test involving two 100% electric cars. These are the EQS SUV 450 and the EQA 300. It all took place at the vehicle safety group’s technology center in Sindelfingen, Germany.

As you can see in the video below, two female models weighing 49 kg, standing about 1.50 meters tall, wearing red t-shirts and white shoes, came out relatively unscathed during the head-on collision between the electric cars.

The company wanted to go “outside” legal requirements – both cars have already achieved five stars in Euro NCAP crash tests, but they still need to be tested by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the United States – to find out what happens when head-on collision of two electric cars.

A significant difference in weight

The EQS, which weighs almost three tons, and its younger sister, the EQA, which weighs 2.2 tons, collided at approximately 55 km/h with 50% frontal overlap to reproduce the most common accidents that occur on country roads.

There were four dummies in total, all equipped with 150 sensors each. After the accident, Mercedes engineers found a low risk of serious injury or death, which confirmed the results of numerous computer simulations carried out before the test. More importantly, the high voltage system automatically shut down and the batteries of both vehicles remained intact.

The slow-motion footage shows the EQA bouncing more noticeably after colliding with the larger and heavier EQS SUV. The test also highlighted the proper functioning of the airbags and controlled deformation zones, which absorb a significant portion of the impact energy and keep the interior virtually intact.

“We don’t just want to have zero road accidents by 2050 and to halve the number of deaths and serious injuries by 2030 compared to 2020. Our goal by 2050 is zero accidents involving a Mercedes car »– said Markus Schäfer, Chief Technical Officer and Member of the Board of the Mercedes Group.

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