Every additional feature a manufacturer installs or offers tends to come at a price. This is why they often offer several levels of the same vehicle – some with more features than others – and why it is often possible to pay extra to have an additional feature fitted.
What you need to understand as a buyer is where best to put your money. One thing that can help you work this out is to understand which features improve your safety and which could actually reduce it.
Improving safety
There are two categories of safety features: Active safety features help you avoid a crash, while passive ones help protect you in the event of a crash. You want a balance of the two.
Active features that can make a big difference include Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Forward Collision Warning (FCW), lane departure warnings and blind spot detection.
Passive features that come as standard include seat belts and airbags. But opting for a vehicle with enhanced structural reinforcement, additional airbags, or more advanced seat belt systems can make a big difference to safety.
Features that might reduce safety
Things like a large display screen, hands-free connectivity, better sound or climate control can certainly be nice to have. Yet, they can be incredibly distracting to a driver.
Larger screens can more easily pull your attention from the road. Systems that make it easier to make or answer a call increase the chance you’ll do so while driving. The more things you can adjust while on the move, the greater the risk you will take a hand off the wheel to do so.
For all the safety improvements made over the years, the news is still filled with reports of people dying or being injured in crashes. However great a vehicle is, it still depends on the driver in charge of it. Those injured in crashes may want help to pinpoint what the other party did wrong.
