World's fastest ever crash test: Family car vapourised as it smashes into wall at 120mph (a speed most runabouts can hit)

By Gareth Finighan

Last updated at 8:02 AM on 24th October 2011

This is the terrifying moment a Ford Focus smashes into a solid concrete wall at 120mph in the world's fastest ever crash test.

Industry experts EuroNCAP normally crash vehicles at speeds of 40mph when giving production cars a safety rating.

But Five's motoring show Fifth Gear wanted to see what would happen in a head-on collision at three times this speed - a figure most family cars are capable of.

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Too late to pull out now: Travelling at 120mph, the Ford Focus is just inches away from impact

The complex operation saw engineers setting up a winch which catapulted the Ford towards the wall using 16-times the pulling power of a Bugatti Veyron.

As the contraption was activated, the Ford Focus hurtled towards its final destination with Fifth Gear presenter Jonny Smith looking on edge.

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It then smashed into the concrete wall and was obliterated on impact - to the horror of the visibly shocked host.

Within just 60 milliseconds, the car went from 120mph to 0mph, with the mannequins subjected to forces of up to 400g.

Hitting the wall: In the blink of an eye, the front half of the hatchback is completely crushed

Going, going...: The driver compartment is next to buckle under the pressure. Thankfully only a cheap crash test dummy was behind the wheel

Because of the expected destruction, organisers refused to use expensive crash test dummies and instead opted for cheaper mannequins for the experiment.

Had anyone actually been inside the vehicle at the moment of impact, it would have resulted in a certain fatality.

Fifth Gear described the test as 'shocking and sobering' with Smith adding it was 'mighty haunting'.

Gone: The car seems to have almost completely disintegrated as the back end hurtles towards the wall

Ellie Pearson from road safety charity Brake praised the programme for carrying out the test, which demonstrated the potential risk of high-speed driving.

She said: 'Modern cars are capable of reaching immense speeds and it is important that people realise how dangerous high speed driving is.

'This footage demonstrates the utter destruction of a high speed impact and hopefully anyone who sees it will think twice about their speed the next time they drive.'