This compact sport utility vehicle worked overtime to avoid a crash

Photo credit: Josiah Bondy

Modern drivers need all the help they can get in difficult conditions. A recent test of GMC Terrain Denali 2018, which has multiple collision detection systems, revealed that even in a downtown area with intermittent traffic, the right warnings and warnings can save your skin.

The GMC Terrain uses an interesting approach to collision alerts, even if some of these features have been available in European brands such as Volvo and BMW for many years.

On a daily morning commute, the vehicle detected two conditions that seemed dangerous and a red light flashed on the steering wheel. (This technology, called Forward Collision Alert, is part of the Driver Alert Package II on Terrain, which adds $ 495 to the base price of $ 37,600.)

On the flyer, there's a button that You can use it to adjust the gap distance, controlling the frequency with which you see alerts (near, middle or far).

With the far configuration enabled, the Terrain seemed too sensitive, and the warning light flashed red twice when a car suddenly stopped in traffic.

Infiniti uses sensors that can determine if the car in front of the car in front of you is braking, but the Terrain looks for any sudden stop of any vehicle in front of you. In one case, a truck with two or three vehicles braked, and the Terrain detected the danger and flashed red.

The system will also blink green if you see a car near you, and amber if there is a possible collision

Red means that if it does not react, an accident will occur. Fortunately, the Terrain also uses a technology called automatic low-speed forward braking. This system never got hooked, but it could brake for you if you did not notice the red light on the screen up to a certain speed.

The red lights were not irritating at all: they take you out of deep thoughts, and make you pay attention to the traffic a little bit closer, even for the next five to 10 minutes.

Warning systems

Collision detection is an incredibly important factor when it comes to autonomous automobiles.

The better the technology works, detecting hazards in a variety of conditions, cities, drivers, and even car companies are more likely to deploy more IAs in cars.

However, there is a lot of work to be done. Recent accidents such as the one involving a Uber driverless car and a pedestrian, and a second fatal crash involving a Tesla, have made collision detection systems even more important.

They work in a similar way to the weather radar at the local weather station. In the Terrain, a radar sends a signal and constantly measures separation distances.

There is also a configuration of how to receive collision alerts: no alert, a visible alert or a visible alert and a beep.

Another setting, available on the main touch screen, allows you to activate if you hear the alert or feel the alert on your seat, which feels a bit like a rumble stripe. Of course, you can also completely disable collision detection.

"Driver assistance features such as frontal collision warning and lane departure warning can help alert the driver to situations around the vehicle," says Tom Wilkinson, senior manager of Cybersecurity and Safety Communications at GMC. "Research from organizations such as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety shows that these and similar features have the potential to reduce the number and severity of blockages."

You may wonder if it's too much information. However, when testing all the features, it became clear that having multiple ways to alert the driver makes a lot of sense.

In the tests, there were times when a sound that sounded loud on the radio distracted too much and the lights worked better.

In other cases, looking at a reference point meant that the visible alert was not as useful as an audible alert. And, with a radio on and looking at a reference point, the rumble of the seat worked better.

Take a closer look at 2018 GMC Terrain Denali in the gallery below