Nature’s Unplanned Crash Test: Tesla 1, 40-Foot Tree 0

Highway 101 in Sunnyvale just hosted the most intense, unscripted safety demonstration of the year. A 40-foot tree decided it was done with the forest life and lunged directly onto a Tesla Model 3 and a Model S.

The Model 3 took the brunt of the “nature hug,” and while the car ended up looking like it lost a fight with a giant, the driver walked away with only minor injuries.

How? Because Tesla basically built a literal roll cage disguised as a sleek commuter car. We’re talking about a roof designed to withstand 20,000 pounds of force—that’s roughly the weight of five adult giraffes or one very, very angry redwood.

The takeaway:

• Tesla Engineers: “We designed the roof to support 5.8 times the car’s weight.”

• Mother Nature: “Bet.”

• The Model 3: “Is that all you got? I’ve had harder car washes.”

If you’re going to have a multi-ton tree drop by unannounced, it turns out being inside a “glass-topped tank” is the ultimate flex. Somewhere, a Tesla structural engineer is currently printing this news report out and framing it.