Research reveals interesting facts about motorists and safety

Those surveyed were asked to consider the most important aspects influencing their car buying decisions once they found the right type of vehicle at the right price.

• Safety and reliability were the two most important aspects.
• Performance and running costs came third and fourth.
• Prestige and appearance were of the least importance
• Comfort was not a consideration and can only think people associate comfort with the type of car they decide on.

47% of car buyers sought safety information. Magazines, newspapers, TV and friends were the main sources.

Again in 2005, Bosch’s research revealed the majority of UK motorists were unaware of active safety systems.

British drivers had a good awareness of passive safety systems – airbags (89%), and seatbelts (76%), but only 18% identified ABS as an active safety system and only 1% nominated ESP.

97% of respondents thought car manufacturers and car dealers should advise them on car safety.

Bosch found people regard safety as important. Many had experienced emergencies. Most want laws strengthening. However only half the respondents knew what ABS does.

The fact 97% of people believe car dealers should provide information has been taken on board by CarBuyersInfo. We shall be looking at how Renault focuses on four main areas:

• PREVENTION
• CORRECTION
• PROTECTION
• EDUCATION.

Car safety and what salespeople don’t tell you.

According to Renault the car driver still plays the leading role in road safety.

80% of road accidents are due to human error.

Although 97% of drivers believe car dealers should provide safety information, there can be problems:

Customer can regard safety features as sales gimmicks.
Salespeople may not have the product knowledge or make mistaken statements.

There is some truth in safety features being sales gimmicks. For example, airbags on a car with less than a 4 star crash rating won’t give you protection.

Thinking about what salespeople say, it’s true in most cases a salesperson will only give the information needed to sell the car. To go any further might appear to be patronising, preaching or pressure selling.

I’d even go so far as to say when a couple are buying a car and one of them makes a mistaken statement the salesperson may not make a correction. For example, frequently one of a couple asks a salesperson, ‘what’s ABS?’ the other person interrupts the salesperson and mistakenly says, ‘it shortens your braking distance.’

The salesperson might think twice about making a correction for fear of creating offence. Especially as the other partner would be more impressed by the words of their partner than the words of a salesman. Only an experienced salesperson would say, ‘Also …’ and give a correct explanation.

Bearing this in mind there are advantages to putting these subjects in writing in a newsletter:

• Clarity and explicit.
• Open to careful consideration.
• Mistakes can be identified and rectified.
• Avoids omissions, misinterpretation, and misunderstanding.
• Refer back.
• Evidence of what’s been said.

So this newsletter is the way to go.

For myself, I’ve learnt by writing about safety. Simply understanding the terms, education, prevention, correction and protection makes a difference. Am I right in thinking most people only think in terms of protection when thinking about car safety? So I hope these letters will be as interesting and useful as they have been to me.

Car safety and prevention, what salespeople don’t tell you.

If you took my little test yesterday you’ll have found under the heading safety and security:

ABS with EBD (Electronic Brake Distribution)
Brake assist.
Driver and front passenger two stage adaptive airbags.
Front and rear curtain airbags.
Front lateral airbags.
Deactivation of front passenger airbags (for use with child seats)
ISOFIX child seat mounting points.

Plus security systems you might consider to be part of safety:

Remote central locking.
Insurance approved (Category 1) alarm system.
Insurance approved engine immobiliser.
Deadlocking.
R.A.I.D. (Renault Anti Intruder Device)

Elsewhere you’ll have found:

Height adjustable front seatbelts with double pretensioners.
Fully adjustable front headrests..
5 height adjustable headrests
5 three-point seatbelts.

Renault say accidents can be prevented
if the driver anticipates a hazard.
Awareness, perception and comfort
being important factors.

Drivers may not be aware of the limits of their vehicle. This is usual because the great majority of drivers drive well within this limit. Audible seat belt reminders and speed limiters help the driver be responsible. You may also have noticed in the Renault Megane Sports Saloon features list:

Trip computer and warning system.
Exterior temperature indicator.

Half of all errors are due to errors in perception.

According to Bosch, more than two thirds of rear end collisions are caused by inattention and 9% by tailgating.

Good visibility is a vital factor. The sooner a driver notices a hazard the sooner they can take preventative action. Automatic headlamps being important, as are the power of xenon lights. Only 30% of accidents happen at night but account for 50% of deaths. Also in the Renault Megane Sports Saloon features list were:

Double optic headlamps with “see me home function”
Automatic headlamps.
Integral front fog lamps.
Electrochrome rear view mirror.
Electrically heated door mirrors.
Automatic front windscreen wipers.
‘Smart’ rear rear wipers.
Time delay courtesy lights.

Did you know cabin temperatures of 30 degrees plus increases the risk of going off-road by 30%?

Heating and air-conditioning systems are important, as is heat reflecting glass. We don’t normally associate climate control or air conditioning with car safety. It’s usually felt to be a comfort feature.

Being comfortably seated is another important factor. An appropriate driving position helps driver react faster and reduces tiredness. The following were on the Renault Megane Sports Saloon features list:

Variable power steering.
Height adjustable driver’s seat.
Height and reach adjustable steering wheel.
Leather steering wheel and gear knob

A salesperson is unlikely to talk these features in terms of awareness, perception and comfort All being important factors in accident avoidance..

Certainly they would not go on to talk about the safety possibilities of:

Hands-Free Renault Card.

Driver’s glasses holder.

Electric front and rear windows with ‘one touch’ controls.

Dash mounted CD RDS radio with fingertip remote control.

It all sounds like sales-talk. The interesting discovery for ourselves is we might have to consider writing our web pages because PREVENTION features are not pointed out there.

Or, would it read too salesman-like?

Correction is probably the least known aspect of safety, according to Bosch’s research.

Renault say road holding and braking are fundamental to active safety and accident avoidance.

Renault use leading edge electronic systems to improve braking.

You’ve heard of terms like:

ABS

EBA

ESP

Unfortunately when a salesmen says their car has ABS, the customer acts impressed. The salesperson goes no further. As salespeople, car salesmen have an easy job because most customers know what car features can do for them. If a car salesperson says a car has got power steering, electric windows or central locking, the customer knows the benefits to them.

But research reveals EBA, ABS and ESP are only understood by a minority. I’m not going to rattle off a description here and now. It would confuse me. So over the coming months you’ll receive detailed explanations one-by-one in this newsletter.

Meantime, why not test your understanding of EBA, ABS, and ESP, and what these corrective safety features can do for you.

Protection

A salesman could easily boast Renault protection systems. Most people must know about Renault protection and their achievements in NCAP crash tests. Certainly it is very reassuring to car buyers.

However, I wouldn’t bet on it. For protection systems to benefit you, an accident has to happen! It really is worthwhile learning about road safety and being aware of prevention and correction safety features.

It is understandable why some car buyers dismiss these systems as ‘sales gimmicks’ and why salespeople don’t sell them.

When you’re not in the market to buy a car, it is good time to give these aspects careful consideration. For example, xenon lights, ESP and air conditioning.
 

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