Volvo crash-tests C30 Electric at Detroit show

Volvo Cars is the first manufacturer to show the world how a safe electric car looks after a collision, displaying its C230 Electric at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show.

Volvo Cars has spotlighted the important issue of electric car safety in an unusual but distinctive way, by displaying a crash-tested C30 Electric at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show.

The company?s stand featured a Volvo C30 Electric that had undergone a frontal collision test at 40 mph (64 km/h).

?Our tests show it is vital to separate the batteries from the electric car?s crumple zones to make it as safe as a conventional car,? Volvo Cars? president and CEO, Stefan Jacoby, said.

?In Detroit we are the first car maker to show the world what a truly safe electric car looks like after a collision with high-speed impact.?

With climate change in focus, interest in electric cars has increased considerably. The electric motor is almost four times more energy-efficient than a combustion engine, and if the electric car is recharged using renewable energy, it produces virtually no carbon dioxide emissions.

Director of Volvo Cars? special vehicles division, Lennart Stegland, said the C30 Electric meets car buyers? increasing demands for minimised carbon dioxide emissions.

?However, this can under no circumstances come at the expense of other properties that customers expect of their Volvos,? Stegland said.

?That is why our electric C30 has to be as comfortable, as usable, as fun to drive and as safe as all the other C30 variants.?

Batteries and cables intact

The car on show is a Volvo C30 Electric, which had a fully charged battery when it was tested at Volvo Cars? crash test laboratory in early December 2010. The crash was an offset collision in which 40 per cent of the front hit a barrier at 40 mph (64 km/h).

?The test produced exactly the results we expected,? Volvo?s senior manager for safety strategy and requirements, Jan Ivarsson, said. ?The C30 Electric offers the very same high safety level as a C30 with a combustion engine.

?The front deformed and distributed the crash energy as we expected.

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Both the batteries and the cables that are part of the electric system remained entirely intact after the collision.?

Large batteries, small motor

The structure of an electric car differs considerably from that of a conventional car, and the new components pose a number of new safety challenges.

In order to give the Volvo C30 Electric a range of up to 150 km it is necessary to have a battery pack that weighs about 300 kg and this takes up far more space than a conventional fuel tank.

Under the bonnet, the combustion engine has been replaced by a more packaging-efficient and lighter electric motor. What is more, the car has a 400 volt high-voltage electric system.

?Our far-reaching research emphasises the importance of separating the lithium-ion batteries from the car?s crumple zones and the passenger compartment,? Ivarsson said.

?This is the same safety approach we apply with regard to the fuel tank in a conventional car. Another challenge is to reinforce the crumple zones at the front where the smaller motor occupies less space than usual.?

Well-protected batteries

In the Volvo C30 Electric the batteries are fitted in the traditional fuel tank position and in the tunnel area. The batteries are robustly encapsulated. Beams and other parts of the car?s structure around the battery pack are reinforced. All the cables are shielded for maximum protection.

The crash sensor in the car also controls the fuses and power is cut in 50 milliseconds in a collision by the same signal that deploys the airbags.

The system has several fuses that cut directly if an earth fault is detected, such as a damaged cable coming into contact with the body frame.

In a conventional car, the combustion engine helps distribute the incoming collision forces. In the C30 Electric this task is performed by a reinforced frontal structure that also helps absorb the increased collision energy created as a result of the car?s added weight.

Comprehensive test program

The crash-tested cars are part of a rigorous test program that also includes a large number of virtual crashes. Individual components and systems are also tested individually.

In addition to frontal full-scale tests, the C30 Electric has been subjected to other accident scenarios such as side collisions and rear-end impacts. The program also includes front and side collisions with a rigid pole. The aim is to ensure that the car gives its occupants the best possible crash protection in the accident scenarios that are most frequent in real-life traffic.

?For us, the technology behind electric power is yet another exciting challenge in our drive to build the safest cars in the world,? Ivarsson said.

Electrification strategy

The Volvo C30 Electric only represents one leg in Volvo Cars? electrification strategy. There are two more.

Volvo will introduce a plug-in hybrid in Europe in 2012. It features a diesel engine backing up the electrical motor. This cuts emissions to less than 50g of CO2 per kilometer. Later, the plug-in hybrid will come to the US with a petrol engine backing up the electrical drive.

The third leg is to use power hybrids to give more miles to the gallon from Volvo?s new, upcoming generation of downsized engines.

?Personally, I believe that our non-compromise electrical vehicles are one of the most important factors for future success, especially here in the US,? Jacoby said.

?I can assure you that we will be working hard to please the American luxury car buyers in the coming years. We will stand out from the crowd by delivering a distinct, individualist car experience.