Volvo XC60’s collision avoidance system adds steering control

Steering support helps avoid collisions with vehicles, pedestrians and large animals, but only from 31 to 62 mph.

Volvo’s next-generation XC60 will introduce an updated City Safety collision avoidance system, integrating autosteer to help swerve around potential obstacles.

The system represents a unique implementation of a semi-autonomous technology typically used to help a driver stay centered in a lane. It will only engage if automatic braking alone will be insufficient to avoid a potential collision.

The feature is designed to brake and swerve to avoid hitting other vehicles, pedestrians and large animals, but steering support is only active at speeds ranging from 31 to 62 mph.

The company has also introduced Oncoming Lane Mitigation, specifically tuned to help drivers avoid head-on collisions with vehicles in an oncoming lane. Notably, this system is active at speeds up to 87 mph.

Engineers have updated Volvo’s blind-spot monitoring technology, again adding steering intervention. If the XC60 driver attempts to move into a nearby lane when another vehicle is hiding in their blind spot, the system will engage its automated steering control to prevent a collision.

“We have been working with collision avoidance systems for many years and we can see how effective they are,” says Volvo safety center senior director Malin Ekholm. “In Sweden alone we have seen a decline of around 45 per cent in rear-end frontal crashes thanks to our collision warning with autobrake system.”

The new features will help Volvo move closer to its goal of no people seriously injured or killed in any of its new vehicles by 2020.