Depending on the brand, don't give control to your car!
Manufacturers are no good in terms of assistance and driving aids and some do much better than others. ©BMW
Since July 7, 2024, new safety standards have become mandatory in new cars. Named GSR2 (General Safety Regulation), it requires all new models to have lane keeping assistance, automatic emergency braking and even driver drowsiness and loss of attention warning systems. or adaptive cruise control.
These are all obstacles to peaceful driving when they are poorly managed, braking the car for no reason, beeping for this or that reason, sometimes (too often) false or due to poor calibration.
EuroNCAP takes stock
The independent organization giving the famous safety stars has long since no longer been content with simple crash tests, but also evaluates these aids… see push to see them appear on production models by automatically subtracting a star if such or such help is absent.
The New Vehicle Evaluation Program has just published its latest results on the subject, with five new models being scrutinized, with very varied results, approaching perfection for some when one finishes.not recommended“.
To do this, EuroNCAP tests the effectiveness of the adaptive cruise control when danger arises as well as the way in which the vehicle reacts when the driver seems inattentive while the semi-autonomous driving systems are activated.
The Mercedes comes out with honors and very good scores and a very recommendable opinion. © EuroNCAP
Premium manufacturers in the lead
Two marks are given, in percentage, concerning the assistance skills and “safety backup“. The first judges the balance between assistance and how the system helps the driver to stay attentive, while the second judges the car's decision-making to avoid a collision.
The results, published a few days ago, relate to five vehicles: BMW i5Mercedes C-Class, Volkswagen ID.7Volvo EC40 and BYD Atto 3.
The best performer on the subject is the Mercedes, which scores 85% and 97%, respectively, mainly thanks to the fact that it moves autonomously onto the emergency lane to stop there. when the driver no longer responds. This element is lacking on the BMW, but it achieves very correct scores of 76% and 90%. Both being able to avoid collision in almost all adaptive cruise control test scenarios or correctly negotiate S-turns at 120 km/h while remaining in their lane.
Volkswagen's large electric sedan does a little worse, with 70% and 80% respectively. Compared to the two previous models, it does not negotiate S-bends perfectly at 120 km/h, shifting after the second corner. However, it does it perfectly at 100 km/h. Likewise, tests show that the Volkswagen adapts to the environment, slowing down where necessary for junctions or approaching curves.
This is not the case on the Volvo, which also suffers from hand sensors on the steering wheel, which are not very effective. In the end, Volvo took 66% and 78%, far ahead of BYD, last in the ranking, with 55% and 35%. The model only manages to avoid an accident in certain scenarios, does not deactivate the adaptive cruise control when a sensor is obstructed, although it displays a message on the screen, etc.
BYD is clearly the bad student this year and EuroNCAP recommends not using its aids and assistance. © EuroNCAP
It is certain that a premium manufacturer is not as constrained by production and development costs, which are easier to amortize in the higher price of the vehicle. This partly explains why they have better results, and it is an integral part of the brand image. Manufacturers trying to sell vehicles at low prices must make concessions, and this is reflected in these poorly calibrated and inefficient, even dangerous, systems.
However, the 2023 result showed a Renault Austral with 77% and 92% when an Alfa Romeo Tonale in the same segment, significantly more expensive and intended to be “premium”, displayed very average results of 54% and 76% respectively for support skills and “safety backup“.
