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The Mini Cooper, one of the tiniest vehicles on display, boasts a long list of safety features, including a unibody frame designed to compensate for a lack of weight, crash sensors and air bags.Automakers find safety means sales
As new technology becomes widespread, savvy consumers come to expect it.
Danny Pardo of smart shows the 2006 for two to Leah Oestreich. Smart's executives say small can be safe.
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Here's another sign that times have definitely changed for the auto industry: safety is selling.
A tour of the 2005 North American International Auto Show proves that safety features are now as much a part of the cutthroat competition in the U.S. auto market as horsepower and styling.
Automakers are racing each other to offer the latest safety gear and package them in ways that give them an edge with consumers.
If they skimp on safety, automakers are taking a big risk. Once a technology becomes widespread and consumers become aware of it, they expect it. There's no going back.
"The expectation of safety is driving competitors to offer much more of a minimum than in the past," said Dr. Ricardo Martinez, a former administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
"It's the best of all worlds if the companies themselves show leadership," he added.
The competition this year is to outbid competitors on standard features.
Honda Motor Co. said Tuesday it would equip its next-generation Civic with standard side air bags, anti-lock brakes, advanced front air bags and a body designed to minimize injuries to pedestrians.
It also will be equipped with a new body structure to improve occupant protection in the event it is struck by a larger vehicle.
Honda say its will be the first compact to offer such an array of standard features.
Hyundai Motor Co. made a similar move with its redesigned Sonata midsize sedan. It will be the first family sedan with standard electronic stability control, anti-lock brakes, traction control and six air bags.
There are also "shingle-style" rear head restraints for improved visibility, three-point seat belts in all five seating positions, pretensioners and an energy-absorbing body structure. And it will be priced under $20,000.
Mike Anson, manager of product public relations at Hyundai Motor North America, said the Korean car company was aiming for consumers who would otherwise step into a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord. Hyundai hopes its competitors will be forced to match the move.
Automakers also are displaying a new round of technologies designed to help drivers avoid crashes.
The 2006 Acura RL sedan will be equipped with a high-tech radar-based system, called collision mitigation brake system. It monitors when a vehicle is rapidly closing in on a car ahead.
If the sensor detects the RL is approaching another vehicle too quickly, it alerts the driver with audio and visual signals, and automatically tightens the seat belt. If an accident appears imminent, the system automatically brakes to reduce the severity of the crash.
Ford Motor Co. is demonstrating roll stability control, an electronic system designed to detect and prevent rollovers. Sitting in a flight simulator type seat behind three angled video screens, you sense how the technology corrects steering and braking to keep a driver in control.
Volvo has taken new crash avoidance technologies to the extreme with the "co-driver," an onboard computer that monitors traffic conditions, how close your car is getting to others, and even whether you are looking tired -- by measuring your drooping eyelids.
Even automotive brands that trade on cool can't afford to ignore safety. Two of the tiniest models on display are placing a big emphasis on safety, in part to satisfy skeptical consumers who live and drive alongside big SUVs and pickups.
At the Mini Cooper display, the Euro-chic car is broken up with a long list of safety features, including a unibody frame designed to compensate for a lack of weight, crash sensors and air bags that seem to cover every inch of the interior.
DaimlerChrysler's smart brand isn't on the road in the United States yet, but smart's executives aren't waiting to reassure prospective customers that small can be safe.
All of the bite-sized smart cars are developed by Mercedes Benz engineers, said Mark Ramsey, product manager for smart U.S.A. They will have "Mercedes DNA," he said.
On Monday, NHTSA Chief Dr. Jeffrey Runge toured the show with a copy of "How to buy a safer car" in his notebook. Among the things he was looking for, Runge said, were whether automakers were designing their roofs to accommodate side curtain air bags, a key technology NHTSA has identified as a life-saver in side-impact crashes.
"I'm interested in how they've done in our crash test ratings," Runge said. "I'm very interested in the new designs. This is a chance to see these guys at their best. This is what they do, it's what the design guys live for. It's a lot of fun."
You can reach Jeff Plungis at (202) 906-8204 or jplungis@detnews.com.
The simulator seat demonstrates Ford's roll stability control, an electronic system designed to detect and prevent rollovers.
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