You’ve seen the “Click it or ticket” road signs flashing at you on the highway, reminding you to put on your seatbelt. Whether this behavior is a habit for you or annoying, it is the law, and seatbelts are standard safety features in every car today.

These safety gadgets began as lap belts in the 1954 Club of America racing competitions. In 1959, Volvo introduced the first official three-point seatbelt, and history was made.

The automotive industry has come a long way from basic lap belts. Now, safety features include things like airbags, anti lock brakes, and backup cameras. There are so many gadgets that it can get confusing. This guide takes you through all the standard car safety features and what each one does.

1. Airbags

Airbags are designed to deploy on frontal impact, significantly reducing fatalities. The sensors on the front end tell the airbag when a collision occurs and force them to inflate. Most vehicles come standard with 6-10 airbags.

As with seatbelts, though, there are plenty of debates about the laws on airbags. Since the inflation rate is nearly 200 mph, unnecessary deployment has caused injuries in less-than-severe accidents. To avoid this problem, you should have at least inches between you and the front airbags and keep children under 13 in the backseat.

Evolving technology is attempting to fix this issue. Some of those 6-10 standard airbags include side curtains to keep your head and neck safe in the event of a rollover and side-impact airbags to protect your torso. 

Sensors detect whether someone is in a seat, how much they weigh, and where they’re sitting. The force of the airbag inflation is adjusted depending on those settings. It’s truly not your grandparent’s car.

2. Anti Lock Brakes

Another mandatory safety feature as of 2000 is the antilock brake system (ABS). New passenger cars have sensors in each wheel that monitor the vehicle’s performance. This communication tells the computer in your car when it needs to stop fast.

The ABS device lets you, as the driver, maintain control of the car when braking for an emergency stop. Without ABS, your brakes lock up, and the tires stop spinning, which causes you to slide. 

The safety feature pumps the brakes for you, causing a shudder that seems scary. In fact, it’s nothing more than the fast repetitive movement of the brakes to stop the tires and keep you in control.

3. Backup Camera

A relatively new safety feature is the backup camera. As of 2018, it became mandatory in all passenger cars, vans, and light trucks. Unlike the seatbelt law, missing out on this feature won’t hurt you in a court case. 

If someone else caused your accident, but you weren’t wearing your safety belt, chances are, your recovery is going to be reduced. The rearview camera is a safety feature designed to aid drivers when backing up, so unless you’ve hit a pedestrian or an object, it doesn’t pertain to your lawsuit.

Rearview cameras sit near the trunk lid latch or tailgate. The sensors are activated when you put your vehicle in reverse, and they light up or make noise if someone or something is in range behind you.

The camera visually displays lines to mark your car’s predicted path, and following the lines will guide you into a parking space. Some cars now have sensors on the side mirrors to let you know when you’re too close to left or right objects.

4. Electronic Stability Control

Any passenger car manufactured after 2012 must have electronic stability control. This system keeps your car going in the direction you’re steering by using sensors to measure sideways motion and the angle of the steering wheel.

In other words, it prevents your car from drifting into other lanes as you’re driving. 

Whichever way your front wheels are pointed is the direction the car should be going. If that isn’t the case, the stability control system jumps in and uses the ABS and traction tools to push your car where it should be heading. 

In some situations, it will automatically reduce your speed or apply brakes to a certain wheel to adjust the course. 

Conclusion

Features like seatbelts, airbags, and other mandatory vehicle requirements aren’t perfect. However, they can and have saved enough lives that they are worth the risk of having them in your car, as long as you are using them correctly. 

As the saying goes, it’s better to have something and not need it than need it and not have it. This has never been more true than with car safety features.