I hit a roo and the "active hood" deployed

[_TTT_]

The active hood feature is not on US spec Model S's. It's one of the few ways you can tell at a glance if a car is destined for US or foreign market on the early factory line.

You can see the pillars under the hood on cars which are equipped with this feature.

 

[mknox]

The active hood feature is not on US spec Model S's. It's one of the few ways you can tell at a glance if a car is destined for US or foreign market on the early factory line.

You can see the pillars under the hood on cars which are equipped with this feature.

I don't believe Canadian-spec cars have it either.

 

[Jude]

I hit a roo and the "active hood" deployed

Here's a close up of the froot internals taken standing at the passenger door, showing the top left section under the bonnet. You can see the broken nut and the piston that pushed the hood up. Tesla need to replace the actuators, sensors, hinges and associated nuts and bolts. There may also be damage to the hood and front latch which will need to be assessed. I now think the bumper will need to be repaired too. It goes to the repair shop on Monday.

 

[Johan]

Thanks, very interesting post and photos. Another safety feature that hasn't been bragged about by Tesla - just implemented. Makes me comfortable knowing they REALLY care about safety.

 

[hun]

Two kangaroos jumped in front of me today and I hit one. Broke its leg, poor thing, but it still managed to hide so I couldn't find it to tell the injured wildlife people.

Sorry about the damage. Glad to learn about the "active hood". ...All Australians, please get a dash cam, so we can see footage next time. (For the record, I much rather see kangaroos hopping across in front of the car than getting hit by one.)

 

[arg]

Thanks, very interesting post and photos. Another safety feature that hasn't been bragged about by Tesla - just implemented. Makes me comfortable knowing they REALLY care about safety.

I thought they needed it for top marks in the EuroNCAP rating, and there was some publicity about it at the time they achieved that.

 

[Johan]

I thought they needed it for top marks in the EuroNCAP rating, and there was some publicity about it at the time they achieved that.

Sure. But I never heard Elon or anyone actively mentioning it.

 

[AudubonB]

You can see the gory details of a Model S getting destroyed (again and again!!!!) in this video from the Euro NCAP safety testing. It includes, late in the clip, deployment of the active hood.

Warning: EVAT* Not suitable for sensitive eyes.

Link here: Official Tesla Model S 2014 safety rating results


*Extreme Violence Against Teslas

 

[blanche]

I suspect this is a foreign regulation that is designed to reduce damage to pedestrians when they hit the hood. In a conventional ICE car, there is a molten hot engine block underneath the hood, so this makes perfect sense.

I do wonder how much sense this makes in a rear engine car (like a Porsche) or in a BEV that has no front engine block under the hood? Anyway, more safety features are usually better than less, so I welcome this feature.

 

[Max*]

The US cars do not have an active hood, and the purpose is to save pedestrians from the impact. I guess we don't care.

For comparison, Volvo (non-US models) has a pedestrian airbag. I'm sure other manufacturers have this too.