ADAS' Emergency Braking Isn't Meant For City Traffic: Proof [Video]
Advanced Driver Assistance System, or ADAS, is becoming very common in India as more and more automakers are now offering it in their cars. Unfortunately, despite the improvements in technology, there are a number of incidents that are reported frequently in which ADAS has caused severe accidents. Recently, one such clip of an MG Windsor Pro getting crashed in the rear by a bike and a car due to emergency braking has been shared online.
The video showing this particular accident, in which emergency braking of an MG Windsor Pro was engaged, has been shared on Instagram by Akkinagpal on their page. As per the post, the clip has been shared by the owner of this MG Windsor Pro from Bengaluru, Karnataka. What happens in the video is that the red-colored Windsor Pro was being driven on a narrow road.
On the right side, we can note that bridge construction was taking place, and vehicles were driving at a normal speed on the narrow side road. It can be observed that just ahead of the Windsor Pro was a Hyundai i20, which was also driving at a normal speed. Soon after this, what happened was that the Hyundai i20 driver had to quickly stop his car as a Maruti Suzuki Swift driver had parked his vehicle on the road.
The i20 driver then narrowly escaped hitting the Swift. However, as the MG Windsor Pro comes with ADAS Level 2, which has an emergency braking feature, the car stopped abruptly on the road to avoid rear-ending the i20. During this time, we can note that there were two two-wheelers and a Honda Amaze sedan in the back, which were driving at a distance from the Windsor EV.
In the clip, just when the emergency brakes were applied by the ADAS of the Windsor Pro, we can note that the two-wheeler rider on the left side dodged the vehicle and went ahead through the left gap. However, the Suzuki Burgman, with a rider and a pillion, could not brake on time and crashed into the rear end of the Windsor.
Additionally, the Honda Amaze driver also could not stop on time, and as a result, it also crashed into the Windsor Pro. We can note that due to this crash, the Windsor as well as the Honda Amaze suffered severe damages. The right side of the rear bumper of the SUV was broken, and the bonnet and front left fender of the Amaze were damaged. As for the Burgman riders, they were safe apart.
A lot of times, ADAS applies emergency brakes to avoid a front-end collision but causes a rear-end collision instead. Now, in this particular case, the ADAS did exactly this, but we cannot fully blame the ADAS for this accident. The reason behind this is that ADAS has been designed to apply brakes under the assumption that vehicles in the rear are at a safe distance.
However, as we all know, in India, people do not drive at a safe distance. So when ADAS applies the emergency brakes, most of the time, rear-end collisions take place. We can note that in the case above, the Suzuki Burgman and Honda Amaze drivers were also not paying complete attention on the road, and due to this, the accident became severe. It still has to be noted that the emergency braking feature of ADAS frequently causes similar accidents.