NZ car brands that are taking safety to the next level

Wednesday, 5 October 2016

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class can activate accident-avoidance braking systems far earlier than any other Mercedes model.

What's better - a car that can drive itself and avoid accidents, or a car packed to the gills with advanced safety features?

Or how about one with both? Most manufacturers are taking a bet each way with that one, developing autonomous technology that goes hand-in-hand with the latest safety technology.

Many cars are now clever enough to recognise danger and react automatically to prevent injury.

The latter can help you avoid an accident, but will also reduce occupants' chances of injury if the worst happens.

Safety technology like anti-lock brakes, airbags and stability control were once expensive options. Now they are the bare minimum.

Self-drive in progress: autonomous Ford prototype is covered in sensors.

Volvo will demonstrate a fully autonomous car in NZ this year.

* Car sharing won't be as disruptive as self-driving cars - study

So what will the next must-have be in the world of safety? We don't think it will be one thing, but rather a highly integrated suite of technology that will soon become indispensable.

Mercedes-Benz has arguably done most to bring automated features to market.

Adaptive radar cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, lane departure warning/assist systems and pre-collision preparation are all relatively common now, even on entry-level models in some cases.

Most of the major players have some astonishing stuff lined up over the next few years, as we march towards the inevitability of autonomous technology.

But which brands are doing it best, right now, right here in New Zealand?

MERCEDES-BENZ, AUDI AND BMW

Almost without doubt, Mercedes-Benz leads the charge locally in this regard. While cars like the S-class and C-class have for some time had the company's remarkable Distronic radar cruise control system that also features lane keeping assist and can effectively drive the car at low speed in stop-start traffic, the all-new E-class takes things to another level.

Featuring the next evolution of the system, integrated into a suite of technology called Driving Assistance Package Plus, the E-class not only reads the lines on the road, but also recognises roadside obstacles (such as road cones) and can follow the car in front even when lines are indistinct or not present. The system can operate up to speeds of 200kmh (so more than enough for Kiwi roads…) down to a complete halt, whereupon the car waits for traffic to start moving again.

It can also recognise pedestrians, make allowances for cars merging from the left, change lanes by itself, park itself, bring itself safely to a halt if the driver is incapacitated and can even prepare your ears for a crash by playing a carefully calculated sound just before impact.

Fellow Germans, BMW and Audi, both have similar technology in some of their latest high-spec vehicles (Audi most specifically in the Q7 SUV, while BMW has the 7-series luxury sedan). But Mercedes-Benz offers this type of technology most widely across its model range.

SUBARU

While the Japanese company's Eyesight system may be starting to look a little basic in comparison with Mercedes-Benz's uber-tech systems, you have to remember that it's a remarkably effective system installed in cars that are a fraction of the cost of an E-class.

Eyesight's windscreen-mounted stereo camera setup can maintain a constant distance to the car in front with its adaptive cruise control, and also features pre-collision braking, throttle management and full autonomous braking at city speeds. It also features lane sway warning and a lane departure warning system.

FORD AND MAZDA

Yes, we know they're no longer a couple. But Ford and Mazda still have plenty in common: they are essentially the the quiet achievers on the semi-autonomous drive assistance front, with a surprising amount of equipment available in a lot of models.

Both have lane keep-assist systems that will gently guide you back inside the lines if you stray, while also making small adjustments too the power steering to keep you in between them in the first place. Both also have a version of radar-assisted cruise control, with the new Mazda CX-9 now able to operate right down to a standstill.

Autonomous braking, blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert systems are also common in many Ford and Mazda models these days. Mazda has also just added a unique G-Vectoring system to the Mazda3 to help smooth its path around corners.

Ford also leads the way in driver assists and safety in the ute segment, with all of the above features (apart from the rear cross-traffic alert) being standard equipment on the top-spec Ranger Wildtrak.

VOLVO

While the Chinese-owned Swedish manufacturer has long had a focus on safety, the latest XC90 SUV is the model that has finally propelled Volvo into next-generation active and passive safety. It even has some world-first features, such as sensors that can identify when the vehicle has run off the road, and activate safety systems accordingly.

But Volvo is also driving into the future with the announcement that it will become the first to unleash an autonomous car on local roads - albeit in demonstration-only form, in November.

A specially outfitted Volvo will demonstrate the technology along a 15km stretch of public road, among other vehicles, during the New Zealand Traffic Institute (Trafinz) conference.