Safety should never be taken for granted and our approach to it goes far beyond seat belts, airbags and crash tests.
Peace of mind comes not just from having the confidence that your car will protect you if the unthinkable happens, but also that its technology and innovative safety systems will do their best to prevent that happening in the first place.
There are two types of safety systems built into our cars; passive and active. The passive systems are those that protect you in the event of an accident – the seatbelts, airbags, the design of body structures and even the way the seats are designed.
Active systems use cutting-edge technology to help predict and try and avoid a collision before it happens or, if it’s unavoidable, lessen the impact. The new Civic VTi-LX has Honda Sensing –Honda’s suite of driver-assist technologies– working together under the surface to help keep you alert, aware and safe.
We know that some of this tech can be a bit hard to get your head around, especially with the number of abbreviations that go with them, so we have put together a handy little guide for you. Here’s how they all work.
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)
We all try and stay as attentive as possible behind the wheel but distractions do happen and FCW is one of the systems that keep a watch on your car’s surroundings and warns you of hazards. FCW uses a camera mounted behind the windscreen and a radar in the radiator grille to check the distance to the car in front at speeds above 20km/h. If the system thinks a collision may happen it alerts the driver with a warning noise and message on the dashboard.
Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS)
If the driver alerts are ignored, then CMBS goes to work to try and lessen the impact. The car will automatically begin to apply the brakes to warn the driver that a collision is likely. If the driver doesn’t take over, then CMBS will tighten the seatbelts and hit the brakes hard to reduce the speed of the accident as much as possible.
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
Using the same camera as the Forward Collision Warning system, LDW spots road markings and gives the driver a visual and audible alert if the car starts to wander out of its lane without the indicator being used.
Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS)
As well as warning the driver, Honda Sensing can help keep the Civic centred in its traffic lane. LKAS adds a little bit of corrective steering if the car begins to wander and guides it back into the middle of the lane.
Road Departure Mitigation System (RDMS)
The Civic’s forward-facing camera can also identify objects that show where the road ends such as parked cars, trees and service poles. The car warns the driver if it thinks the car is about to leave the road and if there is no intervention, automatically uses counter steering and braking to stop the car going off the road entirely.
Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Low Speed Follow (LSF)
Using the same camera and radar, the Civic has a next-generation type cruise control system which automatically maintains a safe distance to the car in front up to the pre-set speed chosen by you. Low Speed Follow means the car will even come to a halt in stop-go traffic and then get back up to speed when the road in front clears, helping to keep you relaxed and reducing tiredness on your commute.
There are two types of safety systems built into our cars; passive and active. The passive systems are those that protect you in the event of an accident – the seatbelts, airbags, the design of body structures and even the way the seats are designed.
Active systems use cutting-edge technology to help predict and try and avoid a collision before it happens or, if it’s unavoidable, lessen the impact. The new Civic VTi-LX has Honda Sensing –Honda’s suite of driver-assist technologies– working together under the surface to help keep you alert, aware and safe.
We know that some of this tech can be a bit hard to get your head around, especially with the number of abbreviations that go with them, so we have put together a handy little guide for you. Here’s how they all work.
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)
We all try and stay as attentive as possible behind the wheel but distractions do happen and FCW is one of the systems that keep a watch on your car’s surroundings and warns you of hazards. FCW uses a camera mounted behind the windscreen and a radar in the radiator grille to check the distance to the car in front at speeds above 20km/h. If the system thinks a collision may happen it alerts the driver with a warning noise and message on the dashboard.
Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS)
If the driver alerts are ignored, then CMBS goes to work to try and lessen the impact. The car will automatically begin to apply the brakes to warn the driver that a collision is likely. If the driver doesn’t take over, then CMBS will tighten the seatbelts and hit the brakes hard to reduce the speed of the accident as much as possible.
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
Using the same camera as the Forward Collision Warning system, LDW spots road markings and gives the driver a visual and audible alert if the car starts to wander out of its lane without the indicator being used.
Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS)
As well as warning the driver, Honda Sensing can help keep the Civic centred in its traffic lane. LKAS adds a little bit of corrective steering if the car begins to wander and guides it back into the middle of the lane.
Road Departure Mitigation System (RDMS)
The Civic’s forward-facing camera can also identify objects that show where the road ends such as parked cars, trees and service poles. The car warns the driver if it thinks the car is about to leave the road and if there is no intervention, automatically uses counter steering and braking to stop the car going off the road entirely.
Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Low Speed Follow (LSF)
Using the same camera and radar, the Civic has a next-generation type cruise control system which automatically maintains a safe distance to the car in front up to the pre-set speed chosen by you. Low Speed Follow means the car will even come to a halt in stop-go traffic and then get back up to speed when the road in front clears, helping to keep you relaxed and reducing tiredness on your commute.