A crash test is a test realized in a laboratory in order to check the safety of a vehicle. The goal is to review the resistance of a vehicle (train, car, truck...) after crushing it at a predetermined speed against a wall.

Thanks to this kind of test, the real conditions of a shock can be recreated and thus the effects on the vehicle and its passengers can be studied. To represent the passengers of the vehicle, special dummies are used.

Any new vehicle launched on the market must undergo these tests so as to control its safety level. After the end of the tests, a certain number of stars is given to the vehicle according to the safety level it reached.

Several kinds of tests are realized. There is the frontal-impact test which consists in an impact against a solid concrete wall, or a car, at a specified speed. The offset test is the same test, except the fact that only a part of the front of the car collides. There are also side-impact tests roll-over tests and roadside hardware crash tests. The goal is to study the reaction of the vehicle in any crash situation.