In the United States, the car is still the primary mode of transportation of most people. Despite heavy traffic and the soaring fuel prices, these vehicles get us from point A to point B.

Cars have evolved and now incorporate the latest in technology. Car entertainment systems that have TVs and DVD players along with 3D surround sound are quite common. If you are shopping for a new vehicle, you should not only consider its entertainment features alone. You should also look into the safety features to ensure you get to your destination safely. Here are the top ten vehicle safety features you should look for in the car you are shopping for:

1. Airbags

Yes, airbags are standard today in almost all vehicles sold but airbags in the front are just not enough. Most cars now have front and side airbags to protect the passengers from all sides upon impact. New airbag technology can now detect the height, weight and position of the passengers. It can also detect the speed of the collision and determine how to deploy the airbags. Airbags can literally save lives in a collision. They prevent impact injuries and trauma to the head, which is a very sensitive part of the body.

2. Cargo Nets

you will be buying a large vehicle, like a station wagon, mini-van, SUV or pick-up truck, make sure you buy one that has a cargo net. A cargo net is used to hold the stuff you put in your storage compartment in place so that if you brake suddenly, such as when avoiding a collision or even during a collision, your things do not go flying around. Your cargo may cause serious injury to passengers during such situations. Keeping everything safely tucked under a cargo net will make it not much of a concern to you.

3. Stability Control

This is another essential safety feature you should look for. Stability control detects and analyzes your car’s speed and direction. It detects the direction where the car is headed against where it is actually going. This feature is very important when you are driving on slippery roads when it is raining or when avoiding a collision or accident. Stability control is able to maintain the stability of a vehicle by applying brakes or cutting power from the engine. There are even some stability control systems that individually control the spinning of the tires to counteract skidding, slipping or spinning.

5. Backing Up / Parking Sensors

can be your or another driver’s worst nightmare to back up while you are parking. Though an injury may not be life-threatening for an adult, when you back into a toddler, it can be both life-threatening and traumatic for the child. The solution is backing up or parking sensors. These sensors alert you when you are near an object or obstacle that you may not be seeing. Some systems even have cameras to help you get into tight parking spots all by yourself. If you are having some difficulty parking your vehicle or you are planning to buy a large one, this feature can greatly help you.

6. Adaptive Cruise Control

en you go on long trips, you usually enable cruise control to keep you from exceeding the legal speed. Now, modern cruise control systems takes this a step further. Thanks to radar and sensor technology, adaptive cruise control systems not only maintain your car’s speed, but also automatically adjust the speed of the vehicle if traffic suddenly changes or when a vehicle suddenly cuts your lane. It applies brakes or reduces throttle to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you. Once the traffic clears up or the vehicle in front of you is not there anymore, your speed automatically goes back to the set cruising speed.

7. Lane Departure Warning

One of the top causes of vehicular crashes is drivers changing lanes. Collisions may be due to blind spots on the rear view or side mirrors or may be because the driver has fallen asleep. Lane departure warning systems alert the driver when there is a sudden switch in lanes. Some vehicles also measure the droopiness of the driver through a sensor that counts the number of blinks. If the system detects the driver is getting sleepy, it either plays a loud beep or vibrates the steering wheel to wake up the driver. You will really need this feature if you make long drives from work or any place.

8. Night Vision Assist / Adaptive Headlights

Night vision does not necessarily mean that your car is equipped with devices like what the military uses. In vehicles, night vision is implemented through different ways like infrared headlights or thermal imaging cameras. As long as the technology helps increase visibility at night, it is called night vision. This safety feature helps you see further, even at night. It can help you see if there is an obstacle in front of you like a log, a pothole, an animal, a stalled vehicle or even a person. In situations where there is very poor visibility, this can be really a life-saving feature you should have.

9. Emergency Response System

This system does several things in cases of an emergency, like a collision. It automatically unlocks doors, unhooks the seatbelts, turns on interior lighting, cuts off fuel when airbags are deployed, kills the engine, switches on the hazard lights and disconnects the battery from the alternator after it detects an emergency situation has occurred. All of these tasks are done automatically to greatly help the passengers get out of the car easily and safely, and other motorists to alert them that such a situation has happened.

10. Rollover Prevention

This system works in tandem with the stability control system. Basically, this safety decreases the chances of a rollover. If the system detects that there is a possible rollover, like when you enter a curve too fast or when you suddenly swerve into another lane, the system automatically applies the brakes and reduces the throttle to counteract and reduce the likeliness of a rollover.

When buying a car, a lot of people only tend to look at its appearance and entertainment features and so the safety features are often only optional. Though the appearance of the car is also important, you must never overlook the safety features of your car. Also, when buying a car, you must consider buying the best one your budget can afford.

 

(For speed freaks you surely want to know the Top Ten Fastest Cars In The World but for those who loves luxury cars knowing the Priciest Supercars in the world is a plus and these trying times you’ll surely embrace these Five Fuel Saving Driving Tips.)