Electric Cars Are Outscoring ICE Cars In Bharat NCAP Crash Test Ratings: Here's Why
The Indian automotive market has witnessed a major shift in buyer mindsets in the past few years. During the period, we saw buyers becoming increasingly concerned about the safety offered by various models. We have, in fact, reached a point where ‘safety’ and crashworthiness can shape purchase decisions directly. India now has its own new car safety evaluation program- the Bharat NCAP. Recent crash tests have revealed an interesting pattern- electric cars typically perform better and score higher than their internal combustion engine (ICE) counterparts. Some of them have even achieved near-perfect scores. Wonder why? Let us explain…
Bharat NCAP has lately been very active with crash tests. The body has been evaluating safety offered by both electric vehicles and ICE offerings. When we look at the top five rankings based on crash test scores, three are electric vehicles.
At the top spot is Mahindra XEV 9e which scored 77 points out of 81, and a five star safety rating. At the second place is Tata Harrier.EV with the same score and rating. Mahindra BE6 scored 76.97 out of 81 and five stars in both adult and child protection, and stands third in the ladder. At the fourth place is the new Kia Seltos with 76.70/ 81. Maruti Suzuki Victoris is at the fifth place with 74.66/81.
It isn’t the case that electric cars are inherently safer. The reality behind their crash test performance is more layered. The way electric cars are designed and engineered is what makes them safer than ICE counterparts.
The underlying platforms of electric cars play significant roles in ensuring crashworthiness. Most EVs being tested today are built on new platforms- either skateboards of heavily modified (and strengthened) derivatives of ICE platforms. Most of them have been designed with modern safety requirements in mind. Let us look at the top three rank-holders. The BE6 and XEV 9e are both underpinned by the INGLO skateboard platform. The Harrier.EV is based on the Acti.EV+ platform. In all three cases, the architectures have been designed with today’s crash safety benchmarks in mind.
ICE cars, though not all of them, typically rely on relatively older platforms or their derivatives, which may result in slightly lower crash test scores.
Now the more important part- how the car behaves in a crash test. Ideally, the passenger compartment should stay unaffected. Kinetic energy of the moving car should get dissipated by controlled deformation of the structure before it reaches the cabin area. For this, every car comes with sacrificial areas called crumple zones, which flex and collapse predictably under impact. These also reduce G-force experienced by the occupants.
The absence of an internal combustion engine gives EV designers more room to work with. They can design and integrate cumple zones better, facilitating better management of crash energy. In the case of EVs, frontal impacts cause lower intrusion into the cabin, due to carefully designed crumple zones, translating to a direct improvement in crash test scores.
EV platforms are much stronger ( read: better reinforced) and heavier than ICE platforms. The battery pack in modern EVs are quite big in size and often weigh hundreds of kilograms.
You cannot just bolt a 500-kilo battery to a frame and build an EV around it. The platform has to be reinforced to accommodate the weight of the battery pack comfortably, and additional layers of protection needs to be provided to prevent battery-related mishaps in the event of a crash. These further make the underlying structure heavy and strong. This indirectly improves crash performance.
In short, the reinforced nature of its floor, improves the overall structural integrity of electric vehicles. In a Cell to Body arrangement, the battery pack essentially becomes part of the load-bearing skeleton of the car.
In the event of a crash, a stronger structure helps in maintaining cabin stability. In the case of skateboard platforms, the battery pack is placed between the axles, ensuring that the floor is flat and weight distribution is even. This improves how the vehicle performs in side collisions. The heavy floor and low centre of gravity further make EVs more stable, and minimize the chances of rollovers in side-impact tests.
Even when it comes to Kinetic Energy management, a lot of engineering goes into EV design. The entire crash load-path has to be engineered in a way that impact forces bypass the battery casing completely. Otherwise, the cells will get crushed and bigger, more serious mishaps would follow. The Body In White (BIW) has to be engineered as carefully as the platform is.
In short, the platform and battery pack give electric vehicles a strong spine and the BIW makes for a skeleton that can undergo controlled deformation to protect the spine in the event of a crash. While it may sound complex, this approach has been giving EVs an edge over ICE counterparts in crash tests.