GWM (Great Wall Motor) has completed its 4,000th full-vehicle crash test at its safety laboratory in China, a major engineering milestone for the Chinese automaker. The event involved the latest Haval H7 PHEV SUV and took place at GWM’s 57,000 sq. metre safety facility.
Asia’s largest safety testing facility
The facility, which was built with an investment of RMB510 million (around RM310.8 million) and opened in 2008, is today Asia’s largest independent in-house automotive safety testing laboratory.
Designed with a proprietary ‘Five-Zone, Eight-Track’ layout, the facility has multi-angle crash capabilities and can carry out full-vehicle crash evaluations, pedestrian protection, and active-passive safety validation.
Engineers utilize high-speed cameras recording at up to 4,000 frames per second to analyze structural deformation, restraint systems, and airbag deployment frame-by-frame. Biomechanical data collection relies on an array of advanced crash-test dummies.
Thousands of accident scenarios
This physical testing infrastructure operates alongside digital simulations, which model thousands of road scenarios during the vehicle design phase. During the 4,000th test, the Haval H7 PHEV maintained its passenger compartment structural integrity, preventing intrusion into the cabin survival space. All passenger doors remained operational post-impact; front airbags and seatbelts functioned as designed; and rear child dummies remained secured within their safety seats.
Attention to electrical systems
Because the vehicle has a PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) powertrain, post-crash system management formed a critical component of the evaluation. Following the impact, the H7 PHEV’s high-voltage electrical system disconnected automatically. The fuel system had no leakage, and hazard warning lights immediately activated to warn other motorists and also provide faster location of the vehicle.
The facility is configured to test vehicles using safety requirements of many international regulatory bodies. This ensures that GWM models sold in different markets fully meet regulations, including those in Malaysia.
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