Tesla: The first wreck

Ptero · #1 11-03-2009, 09:58 AM

As a former Emergency Medical Technician, I am very interested in accidents involving hybrid and electric vehicles. Batteries can hold an incredible amount of energy. When the delicately-balanced system is smashed, rescue personell may be faced with short circuits in the vicinity of spilled fuel.

One nightmarish memory I have is of a night in 1980 when I was working with my paramedic crew in San Luis Obispo, California. We received an emergency call from the Highway Patrol of an single-car accident on a nearby rural highway. We sped to the scene in our ambulance to find an overturned sedan resting on a crushed roof. The gas tank had ruptured and inside was a beautiful young nurse laying in an inch of unleaded fuel with a broken back, pleading for help.

In situations like this, as any fireman will tell you, you do what needs to be done without thinking too deeply about potential consequences. One paramedic ran to the engine compartment with cable cutters, forced open the hood and, laying on his back, cut a battery cable. The other paramedic and I crawled in through the only broken window wide enough for entry, splashing in raw gasoline and choking on fumes, and gently secured the woman to a backboard. I remember vividly to this day the close confimement that offered no escape, where one spark would have resulted in a horrible death for each of us.

I just want to mention this to point out the increased potential for difficulties in rescue that may result from many new electrics and hybrids being introduced. Some designs, like the Tesla Roadster below, have sophisticated current relays that instantly shut off battery connections in the advent of a colliosion. But only time will tell how failsafe a design this incident represents.

"It happened in Denmark. The driver of the Toyota Prius hybrid did not notice that the traffic was stopped in front of him (roadworks on the road). He first hit a motorbike, then the Tesla which was pushed forward under the Touareg! The Tesla was only 14 days-old and had only 400 miles on the speedometer… The car is a wreck now, but what is important is that the driver was not injured.

In this photo of a rear-end highway accident involving a Tesla Roadster, note that the gas tank of the SUV that the Tesla was pushed under is poised directly over the battery pack.

http://izismile.com/2009/10/28/colli...eg_3_pics.html

PaleMelanesian · #2 11-03-2009, 10:06 AM

What is striking to me is how solid the vehicles are. Note how the Prius' door still operates. Note how the Tesla's main structure is supporting the back half of the SUV while remaining largely intact. Rather than being crushed, the Tesla lifted the ~5000lb SUV into the air.

vtec-e · #3 11-03-2009, 10:26 AM

Sure is a lot of good engineering on show there. But Ptero is right. Making battery packs safe in this kind of situation will be critical.

ollie

drimportracing · #4 11-03-2009, 12:30 PM

If everyone is ok, can I have the Tesla and the Prius?

- Dale

Nevyn · #5 11-03-2009, 12:45 PM

Is that a can of "Fix-a-Flat" in the first photo?

rdprice64 · #6 11-03-2009, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drimportracing

If everyone is ok, can I have the Tesla and the Prius?

- Dale

I can only imagine how awesome it would look after you got a hold of them, Dale

Damionk · #7 11-03-2009, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ptero

"It happened in Denmark. The driver of the Toyota Prius hybrid did not notice that the traffic was stopped in front of him (roadworks on the road). He first hit a motorbike, then the Tesla which was pushed forward under the Touareg! The Tesla was only 14 days-old and had only 400 miles on the speedometer… The car is a wreck now, but what is important is that the driver was not injured.

Um....where is the motorbike?

drimportracing · #8 11-03-2009, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rdprice64

I can only imagine how awesome it would look after you got a hold of them, Dale

Maybe if the money was available. With money I can fix anything but the economy.

But I was thinking more like low cost dissection and salvage. They would make great learning tools. I know nothing or less about hybrids and EVs and would love to take one apart/figure it out and get it running. I mean could you imagine the usable parts off of those two cars?

- Dale

WriConsult · #9 11-03-2009, 02:15 PM

The Tesla driver wasn't even injured?! Wow!

Ptero · #10 11-03-2009, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaleMelanesian

What is striking to me is how solid the vehicles are. Note how the Prius' door still operates. Note how the Tesla's main structure is supporting the back half of the SUV while remaining largely intact. Rather than being crushed, the Tesla lifted the ~5000lb SUV into the air.

I agree. The hybrid forced the Tesla under the SUV and the Tesla appears to have carried the rear of the SUV forward in an arc around the SUV's fronrt wheels. What is particularly impressive is no apparent deformation of the windshield pillars or roll cage. This may have saved the Tesla driver's life. And it speaks volumes about the structural integrety of the Tesla.