Mercedes auto-braking gets first class rating

Thatcham, Britain’s leading insurance-related automotive research centre, has given top marks to the self-braking system on Mercedes latest C-Class car saying it will provide major benefits to road safety and motorists’ insurance premiums. During testing for the Euro NCAP rating, the braking system on the latest avoided collisions at speeds of up to 40km/h (25mph) by detecting an object in its path and bringing the vehicle to a halt without any driver input. To date many autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
September 25, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Thatcham, Britain’s leading insurance-related automotive research centre, has given top marks to the self-braking system on 1685 Mercedes latest C-Class car saying it will provide major benefits to road safety and motorists’ insurance premiums. During testing for the 6437 Euro NCAP rating, the braking system on the latest model avoided collisions at speeds of up to 40km/h (25mph) by detecting an object in its path and bringing the vehicle to a halt without any driver input.

To date many autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems have only been able to avoid collisions at around half the speed achieved by the new Mercedes technology. Thatcham says 17 vehicle manufacturers offer AEB and in the UK 7% of new cars now on sale have AEB as standard, while 17% have it as an option.

Thatcham is backing insurance industry calls for a government-funded incentive for buyers to select new vehicles with AEB.

Location Based Systems

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • US automakers commit to making AEB standard on new vehicles
    March 18, 2016
    Twenty US automakers, representing more than 90 per cent of the US auto market have committed to automatic emergency braking (AEB) a standard feature on virtually all new cars no later than 2022. Making the announcement, the US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) said that the commitment means that this important safety technology will be available to more consumers more quickly than would be possible
    Read More
  • The twisting path to enforcement’s future
    June 5, 2014
    Survey reveals some division of views about enforcement’s future as Colin Sowman discovers. Technological advances and legislative changes pose many questions for those involved in road enforcement, ranging from the changing demands of privacy and data protection legislation to the practicalities on multi-speed enforcement. So to get the industry’s views ITS International took soundings on some of these bigger questions. In a world where many vehicles are fitted with GPS linked ‘black box’ telematics system
    Read More
  • Traffex snapshot reveals enforcement advances
    July 24, 2017
    An indication of just how far beyond spot speed and red light the enforcement sector has progressed was evident in the range of new and improved equipment on display at the recent Traffex event in Birmingham. One of the key trends, particularly in the UK but also evident elsewhere, is the increase in average speed enforcement, according to RedSpeed’s managing director Robert Ryan, who predicts a big increase in installations this year. “The price point has reached a level authorities can afford,” he says, a
    Read More
  • The future of in-vehicle navigation systems
    February 3, 2012
    TRL's Alan Stevens looks at the evolution and future prospects of in-vehicle navigation devices. Human-Machine Interaction (HMI) plays a crucial role in the safety of vehicles on our roads. Until we achieve full automation (and that's a debatable prospect anyway) a driver's interaction with the vehicle - all the controls, information and systems - holds a pivotal role in safe driving.
    Read More

Highlighted Content