Rimac Concept One - Safe to Drive? The Grand Tour Crash

The Grand Tour Crash and other EV Crashes

The Grand Tour Reported on June 10, 2017 that Richard Hammond was involved in a fiery crash with a Rimac Concept One EV. Fortunately he is ok, aside from a busted knee that will require surgery. This is the first high profile crash involving a Concept One, it is however the third crash involving Richard Hammond and The Grand Tour. Though it begs the question; Is the Rimac Concept One safe to drive? Are any EVs safe?

Electric cars have gotten a bad rap when it comes to bursting into flames. How so? Everyone knows that lithium ion batteries are highly flammable. When an EV crashes and burns the first thought is ‘was it because its electric?’ Time and again police and firemen disavow the claim that electric batteries are less safe.

Take for example a crash that happened last year when a very drunk woman crashed a Tesla Model S. Indianapolis Fire Department Battalion Chief Kevin Jones is quoted as saying: “If you have collisions at high rates of speed with impacts like that, regardless if it’s a traditional power vehicle via gasoline or hybrid or all electric, you can see a fire in a vehicle like that or severe damage. And so to say it was simply because it was an electric vehicle, you can’t say that because we’ve seen collisions that are non-electric vehicles with just as bad of damage or fire.”

What is a Rimac Concept One?

When Rimac designed the Concept One they set out to “Rewrite the Future of Cars” and rewrite they did. From top to bottom the Concept One is decidedly unique from every other car in existence. The car is so different that it often instills fear in new drivers.

Take for example Lord Pembroke of Wilton Classic. Though he was eager to try out the new Concept One, his enthusiasm quickly turned to trepidation when he realized it was not going to drive like any other car he’d ever encountered. After carefully taking it around the track and wrapping up his review of the supercar, he thoughtfully asked for another go, recognizing that it would take considerable time to secure his bearings.

Is the Concept One Safe to Drive?

And now the question; ‘Is the Concept One safe to drive?’. We do not have the details and extensive investigation reports from the recent crash. The Concept One however, is promoted as having unmatched handling. Several skilled drivers who have tried out the Concept One have attested to this fact.

One can assume the Rimac Concept One can have no comparison to the Porsche Carrera GT, whose infamy includes the death of actor Paul Walker. The Concept One is assuredly powerful, but distinctly controlled. The more likely scenario is that Richard Hammond of The Grand Tour overestimated his own adaptability and did not sufficiently revere the fiercely innovative Concept One.

However, simple human error or even a technological glitch cannot be ruled out. If you look at the video below, you can clearly see some unpredictable hard braking. We look forward to reporting more information on the subject of The Grand Tour, the Rimac Concept One and the results of the crash investigation.