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Renault has an enviable record in terms of
designing vehicles that combine style and
practicality with industry standard levels
of safety. This ongoing philosophy has resulted
in many high rating scores in the benchmark
Euro NCAP vehicle crash tests.
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The Renault Approach
Renault
have a fully integrated approach to
safety. In normal language, this means
bringing together all aspects of prevention,
correction, protection and education
to ensure that Renault drivers and passengers
are amongst the safest on the road.
Prevention
It’s
difficult to know what’s ahead,
so Renault has designed vehicles that
allow the driver to anticipate and avoid
hazards that could lead to an accident. |
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Renault's
First Crash Test, 1955 |
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- Audible seat belt
reminder (SBR)
- Known as an SBR, (Seat-Belt Reminder),
this device warns the driver if they
have not fastened their seat belt or
if it is
fastened incorrectly.
- Automatic headlights and wipers
- These systems aim to relieve the driver
of routine tasks to allow the driver
to give their full attention to the
road. |
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The
automatic windscreen wipers are controlled
by an infra-red sensor just behind the
rear view mirror, which detects the
presence of water droplets on the windscreen.
The automatic headlights are controlled
by a passive light sensor which measures
available light using a set of photo-electric
cells.
Additional
cornering lights
On
winding roads, the insides of bends
are not illuminated by the headlights
and remain in darkness. Additional cornering
lights, directed at an angle of 40 to
the axis of the car, solve this problem
by lighting up the inside of the bend.
They are automatically deactivated at
high speed or in reverse gear. |
Xenon
and bi-xenon headlights
Because
of their excellent output, xenon lamps deliver
a light beam that is more intense than that
of halogen lamps, using the same power consumption.
Due to this extra power the visibility distance
is increased to more than one hundred meters,
allowing the driver to better anticipate a
risk situation.
Tyre
pressure monitoring system
In partnership
with one of the biggest names in tyres, Renault
has developed a pressure monitoring system
which warns the driver of any abnormality
such as under-inflation or a puncture, by
means of a warning message on the dashboard.
Correction
We all
make mistakes so Renault has created a comprehensive
range of technology to help correct human
error.
Anti-lock
Braking System (ABS)
By preventing
wheel locking in the event of emergency braking,
ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) lets the tyres
retain their ability to steer the car. The
driver therefore remains in control of the
vehicles trajectory.
Emergency
Brake Assist
Studies
show that, in the event of emergency,
less than 30% of drivers fully use the
braking capacities of their car. Out
of fear of wheel locking, they apply
insufficient pressure to the pedal at
the start of braking. Emergency Brake
Assist compensates for this reluctance
by demanding the maximum from the hydraulic
system resources at the start of braking.
Anti
Slip Regulation (ASR)
To
guarantee that the vehicle starts perfectly
on a surface offering poor grip, in
conditions of ice or snow, for instance,
ASR traction control adjusts the distribution
of torque between the drive wheels.
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Electronic
Stability Program (ESP)
Working
in close conjunction with the ABS system and
using data supplied by seven sensors, dynamic
trajectory control, also known as ESP (Electronic
Stability Program), assists the driver to
retain control of his vehicle in the event
of a loss of grip.
Variable
Power Steering
Variable
Power Steering takes the arm-ache out of manoeuvring
and maintains maximum precision at main road
and motorway speeds.
Protection
Renault
is committed to ensuring that everyone is
protected as much as possible in the event
of an accident.
Euro
NCAP
Euro
NCAP is a Brussels based association whose
purpose is to conduct very detailed studies
of the consequences of car accidents on driver
and passengers. The results are interpreted
in the form of stars (5 is currently the maximum)
which quantify a cars level of safety.
Airbags
Airbags
are responsible for protecting the occupants
of the vehicle in the event of an impact.
After the safety belts have absorbed most
of the energy released by the occupant, a
pyrotechnic gas generator managed by a computer
ensures the airbags inflation. Inflating in
30 thousandths of a second, they reduce the
risk of serious head injuries by 75%.
Headrests
The
head-restraint plays an essential safety
role in the event of a rear collision.
If head restraints did not absorb this
brutal movement correctly, trauma of
the neck vertebrae, known as whiplash
could occur.
Automatic
roll bars for convertibles
Because
of the absence of a roof, the rear-seat
passengers of convertibles are particularly
exposed in the event of a rollover.
To protect them effectively, while preserving
the convertible aspect of the car, Renault
has developed automatic roll bars that
deploy at the start of a rollover.
Child
safety system
A
childs body is not a small-scale version
of an adults body; it is actually very
different in terms of flexibility. Until
10 years old, a child must be seated
in a specific safety device adapted
to their anatomy. Advanced research
at Renault has developed Isofix, a standard
child safety seat fixing system that
remains effective in the event of an
impact.
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ESME
(Expandable Sheet Metal Element), active anti-submarining
system
In the
event of a frontal impact, the passengers
pelvis is subject to slipping under the lap
strap of the safety belt: this is called submarining.
The belt strap no longer rests on the pelvic
bones, which are highly resistant, but on
the much more fragile stomach. This situation
can produce serious injuries. To eliminate
submarining, a specific airbag is placed in
the base of the seat and inflates in order
to stabilise the pelvis of the passenger.
Pedestrian
safety
The
theme of safety not only relates to the vehicles
passengers, it also concerns all other road
users and among them, one group that is particularly
vulnerable pedestrians. The shapes and materials
that make up the front end of the vehicle
bumper, radiator grille and bonnet are designed
to limit the seriousness of injuries they
may cause to pedestrians in the event of an
impact.
Third-generation
Renault System for Restraint and Protection
(SRP3)
The
3rd generation Renault System for Restraint
and Protection (SRP3) takes into account the
violence of the impact and the position of
the occupants of the vehicle so as to optimise
the effectiveness of protection.
Vehicle
structure
Renault
has, for many years, carried out highly advanced
studies on the programmed deformation of the
structure of its vehicles. Through this research
Renault has developed a process of progressive
deformation where the car structure absorbs
the majority of the impact. Therefore the
stiffened cabin receives less impact energy
and behaves as a survival cell.
Rear
seat passenger protection
In
accordance with its philosophy of Safety for
All, Renault ensures that the passengers in
the rear seats of its cars have the same level
of safety to that of the front seat occupants.
Therefore in addition to the traditional rear
seat anti-submarining bars, the two side seat
safety belts also have pretensioners and load
limiters.
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