New Multi-Million Pound Passive Safety Centre Crash Facility Opens in the UK

A new passive safety crash facility has opened in the UK at the home of Europe’s leading automotive engineering consultancy, HORIBA MIRA. It is the first facility in the UK capable of testing frontal car-to-car impacts - one of the main contributors to death and injury on the roads.

The new safety centre is the result of a multi-million-pound investment.

Jointly funded by HORIBA MIRA and West Midlands Combined Authority’s (WMCA) funding partner, Frontier Development Capital, the project has enabled the length of the previous Crash Facility runway to be doubled from 85 to 170 metres.

This distance is needed to conduct ‘car-to-car Mobile Progressive Deformable Barrier’ (MPDB) crash tests in the UK for the first time. 

The facility is also home to the UK’s only THOR anthropomorphic test device, the most advanced test dummy in the world. 

 According to Euro NCAP, frontal crashes are responsible for more deaths than any other accident type. 

Graeme Stewart, HORIBA MIRA’s Chief Technical Officer, says: “The MPDB test is integral to the vehicle development work that’s needed to help vehicle makers fully understand frontal, car-to-car impacts and to develop – with support and guidance from our engineers – the vehicle safety improvements that will reduce casualties for that type of accident scenario.” 

He adds: “We already have world-class active safety testing capability and facilities at HORIBA MIRA, but the UK has never had this level of passive testing capability before. We’re delighted we could secure the necessary support to bring that to fruition. Opening our new Crash Facility is a landmark moment, allowing us to support all legislative and consumer standards, as well as to conduct the important vehicle development work that will support the global automotive industry’s bid to design safer vehicles.” 

HORIBA MIRA has been conducting life-saving vehicle safety testing for 60 years and has crash-tested around 10,000 cars since 1994.