Volvo's stated aim is that by 2020 no-one will be killed or injured in a new Volvo car. The new XC90 should set the company on the path to achieving that aim.
We're only seeing the XC90 piece by piece - the full reveal will be in August - and Volvo has just released the latest batch of info - which concerns safety.
Volvo reckons the XC90 will be a safe car by virtue of its construction and its electronic systems.
Run off road protection is a combination of both, and it's a world first. If the car detects that it's headed off road in an uncontrolled manner the seat belts are tightened all the while it is in motion. The seats are designed to protect the spine when the car encounters a hard landing. Finally Lane Keeping Aid steers the car to try and prevent an accident in the first place.
Auto brake at junctions is another world first and prevents the driver from pulling out of a junction into the path of another car.
On top of these the XC90 will come equipped with rollover prevention (in which it tries to prevent a roll over by using the brakes and steering), City Safe (which automatically prevents collisions with cyclists and pedestrians), Extended Road Sign Information (where road signs are read by the car and displayed in the dash), Queue Assist (slow speed adaptive cruise control) and various other systems.
The car itself is constructed using boron steel (the strongest steel used in the car industry) to protect the occupants. 40% of the total body weight is boron steel.
The XC90 will also get parking assist which will be able to park the car in a supermarket car park spot as well as parallel park.
The driver will also get a 360 degree bird's eye view of the car so he or she can judge how close other objects are.
By Matt Hubbard
