The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gave a 5-star crash safety rating to the Tesla Cybertruck. The top safety score achieved by the Cybertruck came after rigorous crash and various other safety evaluations.
Tesla (TSLA) Cybertruck aced every area of crashworthiness standard set by the US safety authority. Not just that but the Cybertruck is also equipped with the latest and best-in-class safety systems. The polarizing electric pickup truck is also ahead in safety technology as well.
Tesla engineers who worked on these safety systems and technologies throughout its development explained how they achieved such a monumental task with a non-traditional pickup truck design.
Tesla is one of the few automakers who have a dedicated in-house crash lab. The automaker built its first crash safety testing laboratory at the Fremont factory in 2021.
As the Cybertruck production started at Giga Texas, Another Tesla Crash Lab was developed at this location. This new lab was purpose-built to test the larger, tougher, and the uniquely-designed Cybertruck EV pickup truck.
In 2023, Tesla teased a Cybertruck frontal crash test at the Giga Texas Crash Lab. After around 1.5 years, the automaker has now released the full footage of this crash test and Tesla engineers explained how the Cybertruck achieved a 5-star crash safety rating from the NHTSA.
Cybertruck earned an overall 5-star rating three different areas i.e. Frontal Crash, Side Crash, and Rollover safety. In the Frontal and Side collision testing, Cybertruck got a 5-star rating but in the Rollover tests, it scored a 4-star.
NHTSA evaluated that the Cybertruck has a 12.40% risk of rollover in various situations (depicted in the Tesla Crash Lab video below).
Tesla Cybertruck also received a 4-star rating in a sub-category of Frontal Crash. NHTSA gave it 4 stars for the Passenger in Frontal Crash, for the driver, however, Cybertruck got a 5-star safety rating in this category.
Interestingly, the 5-star rating given to the Cybertruck by NHTSA is applicable on all variants of the Cybertruck.
Cybertruck’s Journey to Maximum Safety
Tesla is not just a trendsetter in vehicle manufacturing and technology — the electric vehicle automaker has started another trend — letting creators of the vehicle share the journey of bringing it to life.
It becomes much more interesting to directly listen to designers and engineers of an iconic vehicle like the Cybertruck. In the latest Cybertruck video shared by Tesla (TSLA), the company’s safety systems engineers reveal how they achieved a 5-star safety rating.
The teaser of the in-house Cybertruck crash test Tesla revealed in 2023 was a 35 mph full frontal crashworthiness test. Tesla safety engineers had to ensure that the Cybertruck absorbs the energy correctly in this severe collision test and maximize occupant safety. The latest NHTSA tests confirm that the Cybertruck is one of the safest pickup trucks currently in production.
A Tesla test systems engineer Eli Marlin wrote in a LinkedIn post, explaining Cybertruck safety and reliability:
I’m lucky enough to work alongside a tremendous engineering team that routinely pushes up against the limits of what physics will allow, and while Cybertruck certainly has attracted its share of polarizing attention: this platform serves as a technological tour de force that will fundamentally change the way passenger cars and trucks will be made.
This doesn’t mean everything is going to look like a Cybertruck; that’s not the point. The revolutionary methods put in play for vehicle design, construction, durability / reliability testing and assembly techniques that brought the Cybertruck into existence will permeate the entire automotive sector.
Convergence is inevitable: all automakers will pursue methods of manufacturing that accelerate time to market, enhance crash worthiness, simplify integration and reduce assembly steps, and Cybertruck *is* the new playbook.
Vulnerable Road Users and Other Vehicles
Cybertruck Lead Engineer Wes Morrill who made it to the TIME100 Climate 2024 list, clears misconceptions around vulnerable road user (VRU) safety of the Tesla pickup truck. He said:
There’s a lot of misconceptions that this big ominous-looking vehicle is gonna be unsafe for other road other road users. We designed it to have the crash structure way down below [pointing at the front plastic bumper].
It’s not only in-line with the center of gravity but it’s compatible with other vehicles on the road which means it’s a safer crash for everyone involved.
Wes Morrill / Tesla Cybertruck Lead Engineer
Cybertruck Giga Casting for Structural Safety
Tesla Cybertruck has a large underbody Giga Casting. This increases the Cybertruck’s structural rigidity and production efficiency. The Cybertruck Giga Casting is made on the world’s largest Giga Press machines, installed at the Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, made by IDRA in Italy.
The structure of a typical vehicle normally bends in two pieces to absorb the energy of a frontal or rear collision. However, the large single-piece underbody Giga Casting of the Cybertruck is designed to breaks into many tiny pieces.
“The smaller the pieces it breaks up into, the more efficient your stucture is,” said Mubeen, who is a Structural Analysis Engineer at Tesla.
Rollover Testing
As we’ve mentioned above, Tesla Cybertruck scored 4 stars on the NHTSA rollover test. However, Tesla has been thoroughly testing the Cybertruck for rollovers both in its Crash Lab at Giga Texas and in the field on extreme off-roading trips.
The following video shows Tesla testing the Cybertruck for a Ramp Rollover, Curb Trip Rollover, Soil Ditch Rollover, and the Big Ramp Ditch Rollover.
The Cybertruck’s overall design and the presence of a heavy battery pack in the floor give it a close-to-ideal center of gravity. This helps prevent a rollover in most situations. However, in case a rollover does happen, the Cybertruck’s cabin stays mostly intact to protect the occupants.
“Cybertruck has lower probability of injury and the lower probability of rollover in any pickup truck on the market,” Wes Morrill said.
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 engineers explain and demonstrate the safety and integrity of the Cybertruck as it receives a 5-star crash-safety rating from the NHTSA (video, in-depth details).){kind=link}