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As our lives get busier, Americans spend more and more time on the road. Lucky for us, automobile manufacturers are doing their best to keep our lives safe while we are on the road. They are continually searching for new safety features to add to their products that will either help us avoid a crash, or keep us safe during one.
Tire pressure is an important aspect of car safety. Vehicles will soon be required to have a tire-pressure monitoring system, where many cars will offer audible warnings
if tire pressure reaches an unsafe level. Cruise control systems are getting revamped as well. Your cruise control may soon be able to help you keep a safe distance from
the car in front of you, helping you to avoid a collision. If the vehicle system senses that a crash is imminent and unavoidable, it will brake hard and tighten the seatbelts.
An emphasis is being placed on warning drivers of obstacles. Some vehicles will warn drivers if there is a vehicle in their blind spot, by sounding an alarm, flashing a
light, or vibrating the steering wheel. If you are driving like you may be distracted or falling asleep, many new vehicles will sound an alarm to get your attention,
possibly avoiding a serious crash. When a driver makes a "panic stop" or maneuvers in such a way that may cause the vehicle to rollover, new braking technology may help
stop a collision. The brakes may automatically apply more pressure, shortening the stopping distance. In the case of a rollover, a feature called throttle modulation,
combined with the braking assistance, may prevent your vehicle from flipping over.
Of course, we all have to realize that sometimes there is just no way to prevent a crash. Automobile manufacturers know this, and are working to hard to provide new vehicles
with safety features that will help reduce injury and death in the event of the inevitable. Airbags in vehicles have been protecting passengers for years. However, they
soon will be able to tell the passenger's body size, their position, and even seatbelt usage. This information will help with airbag deployment.
Most of us have heard of OnStar, which is standard on many vehicles. It alerts emergency responders when a crash occurs and in addition, some crash response systems will
unlock doors, turn on interior lights, and shut off fuel after a crash occurs. With all these new safety features, we can all feel safer on the road.
