How Self-Driving Cars Might Change Crash Testing Forever
The development of self-driving cars is prompting safety regulators to re-evaluate crash testing standards, particularly regarding passengers who may ride in reclined positions. Experts warn that non-upright seating significantly increases injury risks during collisions.
Why it matters
As autonomous vehicle design shifts toward lounge-like interiors, current safety protocols must evolve to protect passengers who are no longer focused on driving.
For the person in the front seat, this opens up new possibilities. Eat, game, watch, work. Or doze. To help you catch some z’s, the enthusiast demonstrates that the Cybercab’s seats can recline. “You can really go back,” he says. “You can really just sleep here.”
Or maybe don’t. In the official Cybercab rider guide, Tesla says passengers in its autonomous vehicles should keep their seat backs reclined no more than 35 degrees from vertical, with their seatbelts snug across their hips and their feet flat on the floor. Doing so “reduces the risk of injury in a collision or sudden stop.” (Tesla did not respond to WIRED’s questions for this story.)
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