Safety-conscious motorists will welcome the latest advanced car braking system - the Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB).
A Consumer Council test report, in collaboration with the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) on 30 car models, has confirmed the effectiveness of this new AEB safety feature in preventing a collision or reducing the severity of the crash.
Overseas research has indicated that 90% of road accidents are caused by drivers who are distracted or inattentive; the introduction of AEB systems in cars could cut down the incidence of traffic accidents by an estimate of some 27%.
Indeed, the development of such advanced braking systems heralds in a new future of car safety by prevention rather than protection against crashes.
An AEB system works by monitoring conditions ahead of the car. If a potential collision is detected, it will generally first try to avoid the impact with a warning alarm to the driver that action is needed.
If no action is taken and a collision is imminent, the system will then apply the brakes automatically in avoidance of the collision.
In the test, the AEB systems were evaluated in three different driving scenarios: driving towards a stationary vehicle; closing in at a slower vehicle in front; and following a car in front which suddenly starts braking.
Some degrees of variation in AEB performance may be detected among the relevant car models in the test but all the systems were judged effective in enhancing safety.
Like any other safety feature, AEB is a support system that should not be overly relied upon by driver. In more challenging situations, AEB activation may not be sufficient or timely enough to avoid a crash completely, although the resulting impact speed may be significantly reduced.
But even if it lowers impact speed only marginally, any reduction at all can save lives.
Consumers buying new cars are recommended to check with the agents if AEB systems are available and to include this system if possible.
Further, consumers should be aware that the safety devices and systems of some car models sold in Hong Kong might be different from those in Europe. For instance, they should check if side airbags are provided in the car they intend to buy and if not, they should ask the agents for those safety features to be installed.
In addition to advanced braking systems assessment, the test also evaluated among others the protection against frontal and side crashes.
Frontal crashes are responsible for more deaths and serious injuries than any other accident type. A typical scenario is a head-on collision between two oncoming cars at moderately high speeds. The frontal impact test conducted at 64 km/h replicates a crash between two cars of the same weight.
The results showed most samples performed well. One supermini scored nearly the maximum points (15.8 out of 16) while one small family car, at the lowest end of the score at 11.3 points, was found to offer relatively weak protection of the driver's lower leg.
Side crashes, on the other hand, account for the second highest frequency of death and serious injuries. Compared to a frontal impact, there is very little space inside the vehicle interior in which to absorb energy, and severe injuries to the head and chest are common.
The side impact test took place at 50 km/h. Most samples performed well in the test with 25 samples scoring the maximum points of 8.
The samples were also subjected to rear impact test. 3 of the samples were found to offer marginal protection to the passengers exposing them to the potential of whiplash neck injury in case of rear-end collisions.
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