So far, it’s hard to find an electric car for sale in the U.S. or European markets that isn’t also a top-notch safety performer.
Europe’s safety program, called Euro NCAP, released ratings for both the Porsche Taycan and Tesla Model X on Wednesday, and gave both models top five-star ratings and top-tier scores in nearly all subcategories.
2020 Porsche Taycan 4S, 2019 LA Auto Show
The Porsche Taycan earned a score of 85% in Adult Occupant protection—including frontal offset, frontal full width, lateral impact, and whiplash rear impact tests. The only critical point the agency had to point to in the Taycan was the front seats’ “marginal protection against whiplash injuries.” The Tesla Model X earned even better scores—five stars overall, with a 98% score for Adult Occupant protection.
Although the two vehicles were in the same range for Child Occupant protection and in the Vulnerable Road Users category (tests that look at automatic emergency braking and pedestrian impact zones), the Model X scored much better than the Taycan (94% vs. 73%) in the Safety Assist category. There the Taycan received second-best “Adequate” scores for Lane Support and Inter-Urban automatic emergency braking while the Tesla aced both of those with “Good” ratings.
The Euro NCAP program notes that the Taycan rating applies to all current versions, including the Turbo S, Turbo, and more affordable 4S versions, with the 79.2-kwh Performance Battery or 93.4-kwh Performance Battery Plus.
In the U.S., the Tesla Model X receives top five-star ratings in all major categories but it hasn't been rated by the insurance-supported IIHS.
This wasn’t the first Tesla, the first Porsche, or the first electric car that the European safety program has tested, but it helps assure shoppers that electric cars are safe. It crash-tested a Tesla Model S in 2014 and gave the electric sedan a five-star rating. It also released five-star results for the Model 3 this past June. And this year it also gave both the Audi E-Tron and Mercedes-Benz EQC top five-star ratings.