Volvo has been inspired by a white knuckle ride at Legoland to create a ditch crash test for the new XC90 to demonstrate its ability to keep occupants safe.
Volvo CRASH the new XC90 in to a ditch
When Volvo was busy teasing us with almost never-ending snippets of information about the new XC90, it was clear they’d gone to extraordinary lengths to make it as safe as possible, as you would expect.
But having conceived the technology to help occupants in run-off accidents, Volvo needed to come up with a way to test and demonstrate its efficacy, which they’ve cleverly done with inspiration from a white knuckle ride at Legoland.
Volvo cars’ safety expert, Anders Axelson, was at Legoland with his twin daughters when he realised that people being thrust hither and thither on a ride called ‘Robocoaster’ were suffering similar rapid random movements to those involved in a run off road crash.
The result was a unique test rig that simulates what happens when the new XC90 runs off-road (as you can see in the video below) and was able to demonstrate that the occupants – in this case ma driver, passenger and child in a safety seat in the back – would walk away from a ditch crash at 50mph.
As the incident starts to unfold, the XC90’s seatbelts are tightened, the spine protecting elements in the seats are activated, the belts are retracted further and then the air bags are deployed. Finally, the brake pedal is uncoupled to stop it being driven backwards and damaging the driver.
All clever stuff, and another major step on the way to Volvo’s aim of no fatalities in their cars by 2020.
Related Photos: 20915 Volvo XC90
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2015 Volvo XC90 Ditch Crash Test Video
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