While the executives of these car companies were smiling for the cameras and hyping their brands, most were quietly relieved.
The Porsche E345 hadn't bombed but hadn't been extraordinary.
To them, that was a win.
If Porsche's result had been too high, it would've made everyone else look worse by comparison.
Now, they could all aim for the same ballpark—and not get buried.
The E345 went through a whole battery of tests.
Afterward, independent experts, vetted and agreed upon by all participating brands, analyzed the impact data. They examined the pressure sensors, frame deformation, and most importantly, the colored damage mapping on the crash test dummies.
Then the scores were tallied.
Porsche E345 Crash Test Results
Occupant Protection: 74
Child Protection: 63
Pedestrian Protection: 64
Overall Score: 69
Final Rating: ★★★ (Three-Star)
The moment the results hit the screen, the livestream exploded.
"Wait, only three stars? That crash looked solid!"
"I thought Porsche would land at four. Guess this standard really is brutal."
"CEO Mason is definitely crying in the bathroom right now."
"They deserve it. You can't ignore safety and expect good PR."
"Honestly? Three stars under this test are still pretty high. I bet some others won't even reach that."
On-site, David Mason stared at the score in disbelief.
"No way. This has to be wrong."
"This can't be happening…"
He'd been so proud of the frontal crash test—sure it would be enough to secure a four-star rating.
But now?
Three stars.
That wasn't just disappointing—it was a reputation hit.
And worse: this car was a custom test unit, built better than what customers actually bought.
If their best effort only scored three stars, what would happen to the ones sitting in showrooms?
Privately, Porsche's engineers had run this test themselves. And every time, the E345 had cleared four stars.
But now, staring at the real results under real conditions, the truth hit hard:
Their internal tests weren't strict enough. Not even close.
It probably wouldn't have broken two stars if they'd submitted a mass-market model.
Safety wasn't something you could bluff.
The other brand heads weren't laughing anymore either.
None of them commented, but their smiles faded.
Every single one was doing mental math:
"Our car is about the same as the E345… maybe slightly worse… maybe better… but not by much."
They all had the same sinking realization:
Even the best-case outcome wouldn't be good enough to beat Audi.
And if Audi's A4 landed in the three-star range too, that would make them equals, not losers. It would blow their whole plan to paint Audi as a safety risk.
If Audi even matched their scores, the narrative was toast.
Haifeng watched it all unfold, calm and satisfied.
"So much for your big entrance," he thought.
He'd actually expected Porsche to hit four stars. They were a top-tier brand, and their test unit was obviously optimized.
But even with all that?
Three stars.
"I gave them too much credit," he muttered to himself. "Seems I overestimated the so-called giants."
The next test car came from a mid-tier brand.
Same market segment as the E345 and A4, but weaker in every way—design, safety engineering, and materials.
The results showed it:
Scores barely cleared the three-star threshold. A couple more points lost, and it would've dropped to two.
Still, the brand's CEO looked thrilled.
In his mind, they had landed in the same echelon as Porsche.
"Good enough," he muttered. "If we're in the same group, that's all that matters."
He wasn't here to win. He was here to prove they were stronger than Audi. That was the entire point of showing up.
Next up: BMW.
A luxury tier above the last two.
The moment their B250 rolled out, the atmosphere shifted.
After testing, the results were released quickly:
BMW B250 Crash Test Results
Occupant Protection: 77
Child Protection: 70
Pedestrian Protection: 68
Overall Score: 74
Final Rating: ★★★★ (Four-Star)
The livestream crowd lit up:
"Yo! Four stars?! That's the first!"
"This might be the winner unless Audi pulls off something insane."
BMW leveled up. No wonder they didn't flinch earlier."
"Porsche, stay humble. BMW just leapfrogged you."
Even on-site, murmurs of admiration passed through the rows.
BMW CEO Dieter Schopf stood practically glowing with his arms behind his back.
This was it. This was their moment.
Porsche had failed to meet expectations, and now BMW had surged ahead.
Their car had taken the crown... for now.
He'd been genuinely worried after seeing Porsche's score. If they couldn't break three stars, what chance did BMW have?
But then the results came in.
And it felt like victory.