Lots of people are terrified by air travel, even though it’s a far safer mode of travel than driving—which is undoubtedly one of the most hazardous modes of transit. That being said, there are plenty of great technological advancements that are making cars safer than ever.
Here are 5 great safety features for vehicles. You should look for these safety features when you’re buying a new car, or you might even be able to upgrade your existing vehicle with some of this technology.
1. Reverse Camera
One of the most popular auto upgrades of the past decade is the reverse camera. The reverse camera is slowly making the art of parallel parking obsolete. For most drivers, the reverse camera can help you back up into tight spaces, which can prevent you from getting into fender-benders. But the biggest safety benefit of the reverse camera is that you’ll be able to spot people walking behind your vehicle when you’re backing up.
A reverse camera is especially useful in helping you spot young children or pets as you’re backing out of the driveway or into a parking space—children and pets are shorter making it harder to spot them in traditional rear-view mirrors.
The nice thing about a reverse camera is that you can actually have one installed in your vehicle, so long as your vehicle was made within the last ten years or so.
2. Better Climate Control
Modern vehicles are developing better climate control than ever before. And better climate control means better safety. Here’s why.
If your vehicle has poor climate control, you’re going to be more distracted while you’re driving. Instead of being focused on traffic, you’ll be thinking about how miserable you are sweating or shivering. Or maybe you won’t be able to maintain a very firm grip on your steering wheel because it’s too hot or cold. While most modern vehicles have good air conditioning or heating, it’s tougher to control the internal temperature of the cabin when you live in an area that’s prone to extremely hot or extremely cold weather.
But there are lots of state-of-the-art vehicles that are being built with “hot weather” or “cold weather” packages. Check out these new Mercedes vehicles for sale near Aurora, Illinois, where it can be very cold. Some models come with a cold weather package that includes a heated steering wheel and sustained heating while the car is turned off for short periods. Cool, right?
Dog owners with a TESLA can enjoy a similar feature: “dog mode” allows you to set a cabin temperature for your ride-along pets so the car will remain cool and comfortable when you briefly leave the vehicle on errands (and there’s also a cute screen that will calm panicked passers-by). Nikola Tesla would be proud to have his name associated with such a vehicle.
3. Blind-Spot Sensors
Blind spot sensors prevent you from changing lanes while there’s another vehicle in your blind spot. When they’re activated, they’ll usually light on your side-view mirrors, and they’ll also sound a “beeping noise” inside your vehicle. These are truly some of the simplest and most effective safety tools in modern vehicles, and they’re changing the way we drive on busy roads.
Unfortunately, blind spot sensors are not your standard auto parts that you can buy online, and they’re very difficult to install. You might have to get a brand-new vehicle in order to enjoy the safety benefits of blind spot sensors.
4. Automatic Emergency Braking
Automatic emergency braking is a vehicle system that uses sensors to automatically activate the brakes when it detects an imminent collision. If there’s an object directly in front of your vehicle, and you’re driving at a speed that indicates you won’t be able to slow down before that obstruction is reached, the automatic emergency braking system will activate the brakes for you.
5. Lane Departure Warning
Lots of car manufacturers are experimenting with automatic-driving systems. But a far safer technology is a stripped-down version of that called “lane departure detection.” Basically, vehicles with these systems can detect when you’ve accidentally strayed from your lane, and they’ll alert you via a beeping noise. It’s another great and simple safety feature that you should look for when you’re shopping for a new vehicle.
Whether you’re making upgrades to your car, or looking for a new vehicle that’ll be safe for your family, keep in mind these 5 safety features that’ll help you stay safe on the roadways.
