The ultimate guide to car safety features
Car safety features have come a long way since the days of seat belts. From airbags and collision detection to blind-spot monitoring and crumple zones, today's cars are much safer than their older counterparts.
In fact, the Australiasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) has found that the fatality rate is 4 times higher in an older vehicle.
So, if you’re in the market for a car, your best bet, according to ANCAP, is to find one that’s been built since at least 2012.
More recent data suggests that in 2020, 64% of all crashes occurred in vehicles 10 years old or older.
So besides model year, what safety features should you look for in a car? Let’s go through some of the most important safety features you need to consider.
Car safety features you should consider
Safety rating
An easy way to determine how safe a car is, is to check its safety rating. There are different ratings systems depending on whether you’re buying a new car or a used car - although they both use a 5-star scale.
If you’re buying new
If you’re buying a new car, you’ll want to check the rating given to it by the Australiasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP). You’ll want a car with a 5-star ANCAP rating, indicating that it’s among the safest on the road.
Toyota has an incredible track record of manufacturing vehicles with 5-star ANCAP safety ratings. In fact, all 19 Toyota models tested since 2016 have achieved the 5-star rating, including some of Toyota’s most popular vehicles like the Hilux, RAV4, Corolla, Camry, LandCruiser and Yaris.
If you're buying used
For used cars, check out the Used Car Safety Ratings Buyer’s Guide released by RACQ and the Monash University Accident Research Centre. Again, you’ll want to choose one with a 5-star rating.
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
Electronic stability control (ESC) is a safety system that helps to prevent you from losing control of your car. If this system detects that you’re about to lose control, it will adjust engine power or apply the brakes to individual wheels in order to keep you on track.
Anti-lock brake system
An anti-lock braking system (ABS) is a safety feature that helps keep your car under control while braking. It's designed to prevent the wheels from locking up during braking, which can cause the car to skid and lose control.
Autonomous Emergency Braking
Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) is a technology that can detect if there is an object in the path of your car, and automatically apply the brakes to avoid or reduce the severity of a collision.
It's been available on high-end cars for a few years now, but it's becoming more common in all kinds of vehicles.
Blind Spot Monitoring
Blind spot monitoring is a system that alerts you to other cars in your blind spots, so that you can avoid a collision when you want to change lanes. It works by using sensors on the side of your car, and when those are triggered, you’ll receive a visual alert - usually in or near the sideview mirror.
Airbags
Airbags are lifesaving devices that protect you in the event of an accident. They deploy in a fraction of a second and inflate to help stop your body from colliding with the inside of your car. This reduces injuries caused by impact, like broken bones and head trauma.
Airbags have come a long way since they were first introduced in the 1970s, and today they inflate faster, conform better to various body shapes and in some cases can even deploy before an imminent collision.
Lane Departure Warning and Lane Keep Assist
Lane departure warning (LDW) is a system that alerts you when you start to cross the line of your lane. It uses sensors to keep track of where your car is on the road, and if it senses that your car is starting to drift into another lane it will alert you with a sound or vibration.
Lane keep assist (LKA) is an extension of this. With LKA, your car will gently steer itself back into the correct lane if your Lane Departure Warning is triggered.
In Toyotas, these features are called Lane Departure Alert (LDA) and Lane Trace Assist (LTA) respectively.
Reversing Sensors and/or Cameras
Reversing cameras and sensors are a crucial part of modern car design, and both are designed to help you avoid collisions when you are reversing, such as when you’re parallel parking. If sensors detect that you’re about to reverse into something, they’ll send an auditory signal to warn you.
Cameras installed at the rear of your car will allow you to actually see what’s behind you by broadcasting what it sees onto a screen on your dashboard. Sensors and cameras work best when used together.
Toyota Safety Sense
Toyota has always been at the forefront of car safety and has recently made a huge leap forward with the 2015 introduction of Toyota Safety Sense, a suite of safety technologies building on many of the safety features mentioned above. It’s one of the reasons Toyota have been named Australia's most trusted car brand year after year!
These safety features are designed to reduce accidents and help Toyota achieve its goal of eliminating road traffic accidents completely.
So let's look at all of the suite of groundbreaking technologies that make up Toyota Safety Sense.
Pre-Collision Safety System
Toyota’s version of Autonomous Emergency Braking is its Pre-Collision Safety (PCS) system. It will alert you if it detects a collision by sounding a buzzer and displaying the word ‘BRAKE’ on your information display. The system can even determine if you’ve applied enough pressure to the brake and adjust the pressure if necessary. Some newer models have PCS with Pedestrian Detection, which can help you avoid collisions with pedestrians and cyclists.
Road Sign Assist
Road Sign Assist (RSA) uses front-mounted cameras to keep track of speed limit signs and then relays the speed limit back to you on your information display (in case you missed the sign). When you use this with Toyota’s Active Cruise Control (ACC), you can adjust your speed to the new limit with a single click.
Active Cruise Control
Using a built-in camera and front-grille radar, Active Cruise Control (ACC) allows you to select your speed, while automatically speeding up or slowing down based on the traffic in front of you without going above your pre-set speed. If the traffic in front of you slows down dramatically, your vehicle will decelerate and you’ll get an audio and visual alert.
Lane Departure Alert and Lane Trace Assist
These are Toyota’s versions of Lane Departure Warning and Lane Keep Assist. Lane Departure Alert (LDA) will sound a buzzer and display a visual warning on your information display if you’re traveling more than 50 km/h and you veer from your detected lane. It’s up to you to correct course unless your model has Lane Trace Assist (LTA), in which case this latter feature will apply extra steering support to get you safely back into your lane.
Automatic High Beam
Automatic High Beam (AHB) reduces your need to manage your headlights manually. It uses a built-in camera to detect headlights of oncoming traffic and the taillights of vehicles in front of you. It then automatically switches from high beam to low beam to help keep you and other drivers safe.
Bottom line
If you’re in the market for a vehicle, vehicle safety is something you can’t afford to overlook. When it comes time to choose, the main thing to remember is that you’ll want a model with a 5-star safety rating. New and used Toyotas are obviously a great choice due toToyota’s continued commitment to safety, aided by the best technology and verified by independent safety organisations.
