Watch the 7,000-pound Rivian R1T explode through the steel guardrail as if it weren't even there.
Electric vehicles are heavier than their combustion engine counterparts. The massive battery packs these vehicles require are heavy pieces of equipment that sit on the ground and lower the vehicle's center of gravity. This could improve handling but could pose a challenge to existing road safety infrastructure if recent tests are any indication.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln recently threw a Rivian R1T electric pickup truck into a standard steel guardrail at 60 mph to see how it held up.
Frightening footage shows the massive Rivian blasting apart steel railings as if they weren't even there. The electric pickup had enough momentum to jump over the concrete barrier behind the guardrail.
The university also tested a Tesla Model 3, and the barrier also failed to stop the sedan. Model 3 passed underneath and lifted the guardrail. Additional crash tests are planned against the Midwest Guardrail System, which has been tested with vehicles weighing up to 5,000 pounds, a weight rating exceeded by many EVs.
The Rivian R1T tips the scales at just over 7,000 lbs. Although the Ford F-150 Lightning is lighter, it still weighs over 6,000 lbs. The Hummer EV is over 9,000 lbs heavier, but even smaller EVs like the Mercedes-Benz EQE sedan exceed the 5,000 lbs mark.
The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center sponsors research efforts at the university. The tests are not only being used to improve our highway safety infrastructure, but the Army is also evaluating how to best protect military installations and other sensitive government sites from hostile actors who might use a heavy EV to bypass security measures.
More than 100,000 vehicles are involved in run-off road accidents every year. As more EVs hit the roads, we will see increased safety infrastructure issues. These tests will help inform states on how best to protect light gas-powered cars and heavy EVs simultaneously.
Source: https://www.motor1.com/news/707029/guardrails-testing-heavy-electric-vehicles/
