Safety testing in the auto industry keeps getting more creative. FAW-Volkswagen, Volkswagen's Chinese joint venture, went to dramatic lengths to prove just how tough its new electric SUV, the ID. AURA T6, really is: it placed the vehicle inside a giant cylinder that looks like an oversized popcorn roaster.

Engineers, drawing inspiration from traditional Chinese popcorn-roasting drums, put the car into a black cylinder heated by an open flame. Like clothes in a washing machine drum, the vehicle was repeatedly tumbled, exposing it to both heat and mechanical impacts.

50 revolutions at 160 degrees

During the test, the cylinder was heated from the outside by flame to roughly 160 degrees, and the car was tumbled nonstop for a full 50 revolutions. That subjected it to a brutal stress scenario combining thermal exposure with heavy rolling impacts.

Afterwards, the windows showed cracks and the bodywork had visible dents, mostly on the roof. On the other hand, the exterior plastic parts, headlights and door handles kept their shape, and the tires withstood the intense heat.

No fire or leakage in the battery

The most critical result came on the safety side: the passenger cabin retained its structural integrity, and no fire or leakage was detected in the high-voltage battery.

Despite looking seriously battered from the outside, the car moved under its own engine power immediately after the test, proving its drivetrain was still in solid working order.