The upcoming Skoda Octavia is the manufacturer’s fourth-gen vehicle that’ll be released in UK showrooms later this summer. To bolster the vehicle’s safety credentials, the Czech automaker has integrated a whole host of technologies that’ll ensure safety for both the driver and pedestrians.
The first feature is called ‘Turn Assist’, which is a first in any Skoda. The new Octavia will have a set of on-board cameras which will enable the vehicle to monitor oncoming traffic when turning into a junction. As such, if the vehicle detects any immediate danger, the Octavia will be brought to a complete standstill, where the warning signal will trigger to prevent from a possible collision. The safety feature will remain on standby when the vehicle’s engine is switched on.
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Another new safety feature is ‘Exit Warning’ technology. It’s another first for the automaker and is part of the ‘Blind Spot Detection’ system. Here, the new feature will come into play when the car is parked up. By monitoring the rear and sides of the vehicle, the system warns the driver and other passengers when it may not be safe to open their door.
The Octavia will, therefore, use warning lights and audible alerts to inform driver or passengers of the oncoming hazard. This will work on both the front and rear doors, and should prevent accidents from happening – namely when cyclists are hit by a door swinging wide open. The cameras in the Octavia are able to observe possible hazards to the rear of the vehicle of up to a distance of 35m and at an angle of approximately 120°.
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To prevent accidents happening at the front of the vehicle, ‘Collision Avoidance Assist’ can detect an impending accident by the use of a set of front-mounted cameras. Here, the vehicle will perform a controlled evasive manoeuvre to prevent the accident from occurring. To ensure it’s doing it safely, the vehicle calculates the most appropriate and safest trajectory around the potential danger by using real-time data from its cameras. You’ll be pleased to know that this isn’t just limited to 30mph, but rather will function at speed of up to 90mph, too.
Cyclists will further be protected by the ‘Predictive Cycling Protection’ feature, which uses radar to trigger warnings to the driver if a cyclist is detected ahead – and will even engage the brakes if necessary.
Read next: Skoda Octavia 2020 revealed: Everything you need to know
These safety features are great to see, but do you feel modern cars are taking too much control away from the driver? Let us know in the comments below or via social media; we’re on: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
