Since December 2nd, following the vote of the Passive Safety Working Group at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the serie 05 of regulation R100 on the safety of electrified vehicles and their batteries has been strengthened with new requirements and tests concerning thermal propagation.
These adjustments aim to improve occupant safety within 5 minutes of detecting thermal runaway. This tests will be applicable to new vehicle types from September 1, 2027, and will be extended to all types of vehicles marketed from September 2029.
This complements the requirements already accepted in previous serie 03, which came into force in June 2021, for new type application on September 1, 2023, and all types in September 2025.
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Water Resistance Tests: Water is a major risk factor that can alter the insulation resistance of the electrical circuit.
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Malfunction Warning: A crucial point for user safety, the driver must be informed in real-time of any potential malfunction of the electric drive chain.
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An overcurrent test has been added to address a possible internal protection failure of a DC charging terminal.
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A description of the battery safety protection methods during use in cold weather must be communicated to the Technical Service responsible for approval.
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In case of an internal short circuit in a cell, all protection measures to prevent or limit thermal propagation, thus ensuring the safety of vehicle occupants, must also be communicated to the Technical Service responsible for approval (along with test results).
It should also be noted that series 04 of the regulation will come into force in January 10, 2025 and in September 2026 for a new type application, with the a new specific label which shall be installed on heavy vehicles to identify the nature of the powertrain.