Say what you will about Tesla, but they make seriously safe cars. This is true both in terms of active safety (obviously, with all that technology on board), but also in terms of passive safety. The latter is represented by the likes of crumple zones, seatbelt mechanisms, airbags and so on.
Having a vehicle that excels at passive safety will save your life to a greater extent than one that’s equipped with all possible automatic bells and whistles. In other words, once an impact becomes unavoidable, that’s where passive tech comes in and this incident from Puerto Rico is a perfect example of such a scenario.
According to Teslarati, the crash took place last Wednesday and it involved a Tesla Model S that managed to drive off a cliff. At this point, we can’t be sure exactly why that happened, whether there was an issue with the Autopilot system or whether it was a driver error. It makes little sense to speculate right now.
What we can tell you is that despite taking a substantial tumble, the driver of this Model S managed to walk away with barely a scratch. Literally, a scratch on his arm. That’s it.
If you’re wondering how that may be possible, well, it’s because the Model S, like all Teslas, is a really tough cookie. Since the Model S is fully electric, the lack of an internal combustion engine has led to more substantial crumple zones, which is key to safety. Furthermore, the battery pack makes the car heavier, thus increasing overall mass, which is also very important in a crash – as is the low center of gravity.
We should point out that while these images, courtesy of Elias Sobrino Najul, indicate a car that’s been obliterated, we believe the pics were taken after emergency responders had already taken various parts off the Model S.
According to Teslarati, the crash took place last Wednesday and it involved a Tesla Model S that managed to drive off a cliff. At this point, we can’t be sure exactly why that happened, whether there was an issue with the Autopilot system or whether it was a driver error. It makes little sense to speculate right now.
What we can tell you is that despite taking a substantial tumble, the driver of this Model S managed to walk away with barely a scratch. Literally, a scratch on his arm. That’s it.
If you’re wondering how that may be possible, well, it’s because the Model S, like all Teslas, is a really tough cookie. Since the Model S is fully electric, the lack of an internal combustion engine has led to more substantial crumple zones, which is key to safety. Furthermore, the battery pack makes the car heavier, thus increasing overall mass, which is also very important in a crash – as is the low center of gravity.
We should point out that while these images, courtesy of Elias Sobrino Najul, indicate a car that’s been obliterated, we believe the pics were taken after emergency responders had already taken various parts off the Model S.
Model S P90D accident in Puerto Rico. Car fell through a cliff. Driver walked out alive with only an arm scratch. Happened yesterday. Thanks @elonmusk for your innovative safety features! pic.twitter.com/J9otsbWNI0
— Elias Sobrino Najul (@eliassob) November 25, 2021