Toronto, Ontario — It almost goes without saying that when night falls, the quality of people’s driving tends to decline, but the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is warning automakers that the case shouldn’t be the same for automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems after dark.
The organization recently completed its first-ever round of nighttime AEB collision-avoidance tests but was only able to grant top grades to four vehicles out of a total pool of 23 midsize cars, midsize SUVs and small pickups. Those four vehicles earned the IIHS’s highest ranking of “superior,” while more than half of the rest received a basic score or no credit.
“As we expected, most of these pedestrian AEB systems don’t work very well in the dark,” said president of the IIHS, David Harkey.
“But it’s clear automakers can rise to this new challenge, as Ford, Nissan and Toyota each earn superior ratings for some models.”
More specifically, the Ford Mustang Mach-E, Nissan Pathfinder, Toyota Camry and Toyota Highlander all received the highest possible praise for the performance of their AEB systems at night.
The Honda Accord, Hyundai Palisade, Hyundai Sonata, Nissan Frontier, Nissan Murano, Subaru Ascent and Subaru Outback were all granted ratings of “advanced.”
The Chevrolet Traverse, Ford Explorer, Ford Maverick, Ford Ranger, Mazda CX-9, Volkswagen Atlas, Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport and Volkswagen Tiguan all received “basic” scores from the IIHS.
The Chevrolet Malibu, Honda Pilot, Nissan Altima and Toyota Tacoma bring shame and dishonour to their respective OEMs by putting on a poor enough performance to not even warrant a grade.
Conversely, 19 of those 23 vehicles earned superior or advanced ratings in the daylight test.
”It’s discouraging that so many midsize SUVs and small pickups perform poorly in the nighttime test because research suggests these types of vehicles are more dangerous to pedestrians,” said Harkey.
What’s your faith in AEB? Do you think the technology will do anything in respect to thwarting severe collisions?
