Watch: Volvo's insane 30-metres drop-test to help rescue services save lives

Volvo cars is well known for their safety standards. As technology evolved with time, Volvo continues to strive to build the safest cars on the road. But how far can a carmaker go to blur the line between passion and insanity?

The Swedish carmaker has now revealed details about some of their craziest crash tests, which can actually put global car safety assessment agencies like Global NCAP to shame.

Volvo has shared images of the most extreme crash test ever executed by the carmaker to help its extrication specialists hone their life-saving skills.

For the first time, in an insane drop-test, Volvo dropped several of its new SUVs multiple times from a crane from a height of 30 metres. Volvo aimed to help its team of rescue services to prepare for any possible crash, beyond what can be simulated with ordinary crash testing.

The unique crash test helped create enough damage to adequately simulate the damage found in the most extreme crash scenarios like high speed crashes.

In such accidents, the occupants are likely to be in a critical condition. Therefore the priority is to get people out of the car and to a hospital as quickly as possible. The rescue team uses hydraulic rescue tools known in the industry as ‘jaws of life’. Extrication specialists often talk about the golden hour: they need to release and get a patient to the hospital within one hour after the accident has happened.

“We have been working closely together with the Swedish rescue services for many years," says Hakan Gustafson, a senior investigator with the Volvo Cars Traffic Accident Research Team. “That is because we have the same goal: to have safer roads for all. We hope no one ever needs to experience the most severe accidents, but not all accidents can be avoided. So it is vital there are methods to help save lives when the most severe accidents do happen."

All findings from the crashes and the resulting extrication work will be collected in an extensive research report. This report will be made available free of use to rescue workers elsewhere, allowing them to benefit from the findings and further develop their life-saving capabilities.

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