Electric Car Safety

by Amy Lillard

(4/1/2013) Electric cars may be the future of the automotive industry. Cars like those manufactured by Tesla represent an exciting new advancement for consumers and the environment. But what do you need to know when considering an electric car? In this series, we examine key information to help you step into the future.

Cars are an integral part of our everyday. It's natural to forget sometimes that they are pieces of highly complex machinery, with thousands of moving parts and a highly volatile power source in gasoline. Because they are a part of our lives, we consider them safe.

But what about electric cars? Because these types of vehicles are relatively new additions to the automotive world, they can seem like unknown entities. And the notion of combining a transport vehicle with power sources like electricity may seem to make the whole venture more dangerous.

In general, electric cars have a strong safety profile. In three key areas, electric cars prove they are just as if not more reliable and safe as the gas-guzzling standby.

• Crash tests. Long the standard of gauging how a car can hold up in a collision, crash tests have been conducted on many hybrid cars which utilize electricity and a few fully electric vehicles. Results from tests conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety show no difference in frontal or side crash-test performance. Some tests have indicated a poorer performance when it comes to roof strength due to additional hardware and batteries.

• Batteries. Electric cars get top scores in battery strength. They are designed to withstand variable temperatures and the bumps and jolts of the road, and are well-protected within the vehicles.

• Added backup features. Included features typically automatically disconnect the battery from the rest of the car in case of emergencies, like voltage leaks or airbag deployments. Rescue workers had a hand in asking electric car manufacturers to provide a master cutoff switch in the case of crashes, allowing for quick disabling of power to prevent further damage during recovery efforts.

Electric Car Safety

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