Many vehicles are now being made with better safety features and more driver information systems than ever before. One of the most important improvements we have seen in the recent auto industry is the inclusion of automatic emergency braking. This has been one of those features that we look at and wonder why we didn’t have it much sooner. Not only have we regretted the lack of technological advancements that have resulted in a large number of rear end collisions that could have been avoided, but now we see this feature will become a standard offering on vehicles in the near future.
By 2022 all vehicles that weigh less than 8,500 pounds will be required to be made with automatic emergency braking systems. This will apply to all vehicles but those that have manual transmissions may be given more time to include this technology. This automatic emergency braking is typically incorporated into the forward collision warning system to make for a pair of features that work well together. This new announcement will offer an industry wide new safety feature that will be standard across the board a full two years ahead of the schedule expected.
The IIHS has recently performed a study that showed this feature can reduce the number of rear end collisions by forty percent but right now fewer than ten percent of new vehicles on the road offer this feature as standard equipment. While having this as an optional part of the forward collision warning system is a good step forward, the need to have automatic emergency braking as a standard feature is more important for all the good this feature can do for us on the road. Because of this the NHTSA and IIHS had worked out agreements with ten automakers to make this standard on their vehicles.
These ten original automakers that agreed to this change were BMW, Ford, GM, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota and Volvo. With the news these ten were going to make the change and make it standard there have been others that joined the call including FCA, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar, Land Rover, Kia, Maserati, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Porsche and Subaru. These names account for 99 percent of the US light vehicle sales to give us a nearly across the board compliance with this new standard that must happen in order to keep us as drivers safer in our vehicles.
With so many new features created to give us more connectivity and warn us of dangers, it’s going to be comforting to have a feature that is standard on all vehicles which makes such a huge difference in helping us avoid having a collision with another vehicle. If you have ever been in a rear end collision with another vehicle you can certainly appreciate the need to have this technology offered as standard fare. If you haven’t you should appreciate the idea of not worrying about hitting the cars in front of you with this new technology which will be standard starting in 2022.
This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning a commission is given should you decide to make a purchase through these links, at no cost to you. All products shown are researched and tested to give an accurate review for you.
