This Female Crash Test Dummy Could Avoid 17% Deaths

THOR-5F, the first crash test dummy designed to replicate the female anatomy, represents a huge leap forward in technology.

Why this is a huge step

Women are less likely to get into car crashes, yet they are 17% more likely than men to die in a collision, according to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

A safety breakthrough

Women are 73% more likely to be injured in a car crash than men. This is because most automobile safety tools are tested on and designed to protect male bodies.

Not just a smaller male model

While automakers and regulators have been testing for female crash impacts for over 25 years, they’ve been using a test dummy that’s essentially a scaled-down version of the male.

Meet THOR-5F

The female -accurate crash test dummy - The 'Test device for Human Occupant Restraint' (Thor-5F)- is engineered by Humanetics. Its movements are more humanlike and anatomically precise, engineers said.

What makes it different from the male model?

The female crash test dummy comes with breasts, the shape of the neck, legs, pelvic bone, and collarbone more accurately represent the female body, and it has 150 sensors, which is thrice as many as the older models.

Newer functions

The old Hybrid III dummy was unable to twist, bend side-to-side, or measure stresses on internal organs; the THOR-05F can perform those functions while providing "more lifelike biomechanical responses to accidents."

Approval from US Transport Dept

In November, 2025, US Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy endorsed THOR-5F. "After years of delays, our team has worked hard over the last eight months to finalise the details for this new female crash test dummy," he said.