CALIFORNIA (FOX26) — They haven’t taken over California highways yet, but we’re seeing more electric vehicles on the road.

There are 1,200,000 electric vehicles in California, according to the Department of Energy.

What might surprise you is how EVs outweigh standard cars with combustible engines.

That’s what a 7,000-pound electric vehicle could do to a guardrail going 60 miles per hour.

The University of Nebraska at Lincoln crashes cars at its midwestern highway safety facility.

Remember that battery electric vehicles are quite safe in the tests they are designed to meet. Both Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tests are evaluated against federal standards, said Ron Faller, a professor at the University of Nebraska Lincoln.

In another test, it is revealing to see what happens after the truck hits the barrier.

He backed up a few meters, but the truck neither jumped nor went through the concrete.

We are not surprised. If you have more energy, more momentum in a collision with a heavier vehicle, that barrier will be subject to greater displacement and higher levels of damage, which Faller said he also experienced.

While the crash didn’t surprise the investigation director, it does concern Fresno Councilman Jim Patterson.

When I reviewed the test video I was absolutely blown away. Patterson said there was equipment here that was heavy and dangerous enough to destroy the K-rail.

Professor Faller believes it is too early to draw any conclusions regarding the testing of electric vehicles.

What he noticed when he hit the car was the g-force measured by a sensor in the car.

Typically the weight of our vehicles with similar barriers reduces acceleration by 10-16g. “I’m only scoring a home run, but it’s in that range,” Faller said.

Professor Faller says the limit is 20.4.

Faller said that in our battery-electric vehicle sedan test, we achieved a 32g acceleration in lowering side passengers, which is more than 50% of our allowable tolerance.

Faller says that figure is alarming, but says the sensor reading cannot determine whether people in the vehicle will be seriously injured.

Patterson, vice chairman of the House Utilities and Energy committee, believes it’s time for the feds to get involved.

“Given this evidence, I think National Transportation Safety folks need to do some serious crash testing on these very heavy and very dangerous electric vehicles,” Patterson said.

Professor Faller says it’s unknown whether all EVs will behave the same way as the vehicles they tested in Nebraska.

We have many years of research and studies to do before we can say anything. We’re just getting started.

It will be three to five years before Professor Faller says they have enough research to better address any safety concerns.