It kind of says something when it turns out that Volvo, with their old-timey ‘dumb’ safety features, seems to be outperforming all the sexier brands on safety.
Maybe focusing on the dumb stuff brings a lot more bang for the buck than the sparkly new ‘smart’ safety widgets?
Volvo is known for actually caring about real-world safety, not just what the tests happen to test. Or, I guess, what looks good on the feature checklist.
Volvo sort of prides themselves on safety, including "smart" widgets.
2003 Blind Spot Information System (BLIS): BLIS uses cameras or radars to detect other cars approaching your car.
2008 City Safety: Emergency braking system using laser to detect, it helps reduce the risk of rear-end collisions at low speeds
2010 Pedestrian detection with full auto brake: Using radar and camera, this system warns the driver if somebody steps out in front of the car, and brakes by itself if the driver fails to do so.
2016 Connected safety: use the cloud to share critical data between vehicles, alerting the driver about slippery road sections or vehicles that have activated their hazard lights.
2018 Oncoming mitigation by braking: A Volvo car driving in a built-up highway with digitally rendered signs depicting oncoming mitigation by braking.
If an oncoming vehicle veers into your lane and a collision is unavoidable, this feature can help reduce your vehicle's speed to mitigate the force of the collision
2023 Lidar: Based on high-performance sensors, Lidar technology is key for creating safe autonomous cars. It helps autonomous cars detect other cars, pedestrians and cyclists
2023 Driver Understanding System: 2-camera system can detect if the driver is distracted, sleepy or even intoxicated. If needed, the system will activate a protective shield and take appropriate countermeasures to preserve safety margins.
Maybe focusing on the dumb stuff brings a lot more bang for the buck than the sparkly new ‘smart’ safety widgets?