How to Assess
Vehicle Safety: The Four Essentials
When
it comes to choosing a vehicle, we all want one that is going to keep us safe
on the roads. No matter how good of a driver you are, accidents can still
happen, and in the event that it all goes wrong, you’re going to want to have
faith in the car that you’re driving.
But
how do you sort the wheat from the chaff? Whether you’re looking at new models
or used cars,
there are a few universal essentials that you should be researching before
settling on a particular motor.
Here
are four of the most important…
#1:
Crash Test Scores
When
you take your vehicle out on the road, you don’t have to leave the likelihood
of it keeping you safe in the event of a crash to chance. This is something
that has already been tested for you, and the results are
out there for everybody to see. The higher
the score of the particular make and model you’re looking at, the more likely
you are to avoid serious injury or death should you one day be involved in an
accident.
#2:
Side Airbags
Head
on collisions are the most common type of accident, but side impacts are just
behind them, and out of every type of crash, they are the ones most likely to
prove fatal. So how can you minimise the risks? That’s an easy one: by looking
for vehicles that have side head airbags installed for every occupant, and at
the very least, torso airbags for the two front passengers too. These will
dramatically reduce the chances of you being seriously injured or killed in the
event of a collision.
#3:
Electronic Stability Control
Next
up, keep an eye out for electronic stability control. This is basically a multi-directional
version of an automatic braking system, and works by lessening the chance of
your vehicle skidding following any sharp turns that you need to make. Having
it installed is hypothesised to cut the risk of fatality in a single vehicle
crash by 50 percent, and as half of motoring deaths occur in such
circumstances, it is well worth having.
#4:
Ride Height
Last
but not least, we encourage you to take a look at any vehicle’s ride height,
for the greater this is, the fewer occupant fatalities there tend to be. The
science behind this is simple: if your head should be higher than the vehicle
that’s about to ram into your door at 50 mph, you’re significantly less likely
to either suffer brain injuries or underride the other vehicle.
Stay
safe today: check that these four essential safety features are present in any
motor you’re considering buying, and give yourself the best possible chance of
walking away from an accident intact.