Can airbags save your life?

A lot of people believe that the typical seat belts and airbags are enough to save their lives, but is that really true? With all the technology available today, car makers are coming up with better ways to develop safety.

Ever heard of back-up cameras? Or how about surrounding sensors? Many of the manufacturers are creating all kinds of devices or added features that have safety in mind. According to the National Highway Safety Administration, “motor vehicle accidents in the U.S. resulted in 2.9 million injury cases and 42,636 deaths in 2005. In addition to the human toll, such accidents cost an estimated $7,300 per second. That’s $230.6 billion dollars a year, or about $820 per person in the U.S. “BestStuff.com reports, “Luxury automaker Lexus has even launched an entire ad campaign on the subject for its 2008 RX 350 SUV, which highlights the benefits of the vehicle’s active safety systems.”So what should you look for if you want all that and more?” Check out these options:

Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) compares the driver’s intended direction in steering and braking inputs, to the vehicle’s response, via lateral acceleration, rotation and individual wheel speeds, and then brakes individual front or rear wheels and reduces excess engine power as needed to help correct understeer or oversteer.

In English? While it can’t override a car’s physical limits, VSC (or ESC) can help the driver maintain control. Adaptive Front Light Systems (AFS) redirect low-beam headlamp units individually in a horizontal direction in accordance with steering angle and vehicle speed. As a result, these systems can improve visibility during nighttime cornering, ensuring safer driving. What does that mean for you? When going into a turn, the driver naturally looks into the turn, however traditional headlights don’t follow. The AFS will actually rotate the headlights to see ahead into a corner. Pretty nifty! Windshield Wipers are an important safety element. Now manufacturers are offering superior quality wiper blades, which help with visibility when it’s raining. Lexus has taken wiper blades one step further by developing an available rain-sensing system that detects and automatically responds when water drops accumulate on the windshield.Tire Pressure is something we mention a lot, and for good reason. According to a poll conducted by AAA, 85 percent of motorists do not know how to check their vehicle’s tire pressure. But the amount of tire pressure can greatly affect how your car grips the road. Tires can affect the vehicles’ braking, acceleration, and handling capabilities. When looking for a good safety feature, check out cars with a tire pressure monitoring system.Be safe out there!