The Tesla Model Y may be up for a list of top safety scores like the Model 3 based on Sandy Munro’s insights of the crossover's front impact structure. The expert auto consultant’s latest video covered the Model Y’s front impact structure, snap-fit lamp, and serviceability.

The most interesting insights he shared were about the front impact structure because it hinted at the future safety scores the Model Y would receive. When Munro looked at the Model Y’s front impact structure, he made three observations.

First, he noticed that Tesla used thicker sheet metal for the front of the rail on the Model Y when compared to the Model 3. According to Munro, the front structure of the Model Y was very different from the Model 3. So it would be one of the components that Tesla’s SUV didn’t share with the all-electric sedan.

Second, Munro pointed out the Model Y’s front cradle, specifically its mounting points, which extended from the rail. The front cradle’s mounting points reached SORB zone territory by 25%. 

SORB crash tests are conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and an acronym for “small overlap barrier.” According to the NHTSA, in SORB tests, the rigid barrier absorbs most of the impact during the event of a crash instead of the vehicle’s main longitudinal structures.

Lastly, Munro talked about the "tusk" of the Model Y. He noted that the SORB tusk was cast in aluminum and sleeved into an aluminum bumper beam. Based on his explanation, Elon’s tusk—pun intended—will absorb the energy from an impact and send it to the front structure, which Munro called “uber strong.”

“This is very, very, very different than what we saw on the Model 3. The Model 3 didn’t have anything quite the same as that,” said Munro about the Model Y’s front impact structure.

Elon Musk Shows Appreciation For Recent Sandy Munro Tesla Model Y Teardown https://t.co/T4nUiDL57s pic.twitter.com/kPQedkQDgf

— Tesmanian.com (@Tesmanian_com) April 3, 2020

The Model 3 earned the title of 2020 Top Safety Pick + award from the Insurance Institue for High Safety’s (IIHS) in the midsize luxury cars category. Besides the IIHS, Tesla’s Model 3 also received top safety ratings from the NHTSA and Euro NCAP.

Given Munro’s comments and insights about the Model Y’s front impact structure, Tesla’s SUV seems to be on the same path as the Model 3 when it comes to safety ratings. Munro’s recent teardown may have even revealed that the Model Y may even be better prepared for frontal impacts than the Model 3.

It appears that Tesla continues to make small improvements for the safety of its drivers, widening the gap between itself and the other cars on the road.

Featured Image Credit: Munro Live