The next essential: Safety systems for executive cars
Lane departure, intelligent braking systems and blind spot monitoring are set to become the next essential options in executive cars and predicts Glass.
Systems such as lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring and intelligent braking systems are rapidly becoming more significant in the eyes of used car buyers, according to Steve Jackson, Glass’s chief car editor.
How common are the safety systems expected to be?
According to Steve, these new safety features will soon be as common as standard extras such as Sat Nav, Bluetooth and leather interiors!
Steve explained: “We believe that the active safety systems that have started to be fitted to cars over the last few years are set to join this list. Initially very expensive, they are starting to fall in price and, at the same time, consumer awareness is growing.
“Crucially, there is a ‘buzz’ around them. It is now quite common to hear friend-of-a-friend stories about how someone would’ve had a serious accident if they hadn’t had one of these systems fitted to their car. People are starting to move through a process of expecting them to be fitted.”
Is the fleet market for or against the systems?
It’s felt that the fleet market is playing an important part in helping to familiarise these safety systems for cars, and that we will soon see this technology in the used car market.
“If you have a group of company car drivers who cover a lot of motorway miles, then it makes sense to tick the box to order a lane departure system from a risk management point of view. For some employers, this is becoming standard practice and, in due course, these cars are making their way onto the used market.”
For Glass’s, he added, the main question was, which of the different safety systems that are now available on new cars would become a requirement for used buyers?
“There are many different types of these systems from different manufacturers with differing degrees of sophistication. However, if I were to place a bet, it is that buyers will first start to view blind spot monitors as essential. Almost everyone knows the sickly feeling of almost pulling across a lane into another vehicle and these systems can almost entirely remove the chances of that happening.”
Do you think these safety systems for cars are worthwhile or destined to fall away only to be seen as a fad in years to come? We’d be intrigued to hear your thoughts via Twitter where we discuss various topics for those interested in cars and company car fleet management.