ABS, ESP, EBD & Airbag - What Value Do They Add?


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MSN1: The top selling car in India might not have these features, but that is because the people of India have not been exposed to the kind of safety features that should be standard in all cars.

The safety features in no way will replace driver instinct, the same way fighter jets and formula 1 cars still rely on drivers.They are just aids to make your trips more safer and ensure that no harm comes to you or your family members.

Humans do get tired especially on long trips, some cars come with sensors that can detect these and apply brakes and also activate buzzers to make sure the driver can stay awake.Although this technology will take years to come to our country, but we can very well as an automotive forum develop a petition to make sure they government takes the necessary steps to atleast make aids like ABS+EBD and front airbags standard on all cars sold in the country and also carry out crash tests to make sure the cars structure can take the kind of impacts that would happen in case of an accident.This way buyers will know what to expect from what car and make better decisions.
I know, i agree thats the one reason am always opting for top end variant and i will sign ASAP once the petition is ready online
 
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Well, For the price of Grand i10 Asta (0), we can get the Ritz ZDI, Liva GD SP, Figo Titanium Diesel, Micra Diesel XL (0) etc which are all equipped with ABS+EBD and Airbags.

I said my opinions in a very detailed way in another thread with detailed comparisons. I've nothing to say anything more about Grand i10. Period.

Thanks and Have a good day.
Well buddy if you have done such extensive research then can you please post for us a complete comparo between the said cars? It will help us get the very clear picture and there will be very less scope for any doubt.
As we say "there is a lot more than what meets the eye".
 
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TSIVipul, that would have to be on another thread.It would be OT on this one.
Man, here we are talking of what the car has got in terms of safety features with another features. This includes ABS, number of airbags, body construction , crumple zones etc etc. Adding to it are the general features of the car. In other words, it can't be completely off topic for either of the threads.
 
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Hi Friends, I was looking forward to upgrade the existing Technology of ABS and EBD system. Can anyone suggest some suppliers of these systems? Or where I can buy them as spares?
 
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Lots of people had this thing in there mind but unfortunately it is not financially viable to retro fit on the existing cars.There are sensors to be added in all four wheels and an ECU update also required .May be we can try it on an old swift or Ritz and see.
 
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I have Honda City 2014 iDTEC which has ABS+EBD+Brake Assist. (upgraded from non ABS car). I heard about all these terms but never knew about difference in braking.

Few times while braking in emergency situations I heard lot of noise and vibration in brake pedals and panicked thinking some issue with car and was reluctant to use full pressure. Just yesterday understood that its ABS in action. What I observed is for car to stop , brake pedal needs to be pressed again for car to come to complete stop. My question is in emergency situations what is correct way of braking?
 
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In situations which involve braking in rough surfaces( Within potholes or irregular patches of road), ABS senses it wrongly,in such situation repress the pedal .

That is press pedal-Braking action may be -only 30%, depress,press again -it will be 80% for sure(If all other systems work correctly).

Also don't pump and brake as in old cars that have liner systems, this method is not advisable in newer cars having Brake pads (Which features the same function as to distribute the brake force,which is inturn enhanced by EBD sensors)
 
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Any car owner with a recent/higher version will tell you that ABS is extremely useful. I was driving my Linea T-Jet on Solapur-Pune stretch of the NH, nice bright afternoon at 90 kph, with my parents. Out of the blue, a villager comes exactly across on his bike with another woman pillion. This fellow is blissfully aware of a car blaring horns, flashing lights, bearing down at 90 kph. I braked hard, swiftly turned , avoided him by centimetres and came to a near standstill, without ever losing control. And after all that, he gives ME that "WTF" look when it should be the opposite. I just carry on, deciding it was pointless to argue in such situations. Lives saved, matter closed. This worked because of disk brakes, ABS+EBD plus fat tyres (205-55R16) and of course, Linea's outstanding steering/handling control.
There is no question of whether ABS works. Except on gravel/snow where the braking distance increases. But that would be a rare condition.
 
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First of all sorry for those mistakes,It was typed via cell.

There are some people who complains that car doesn't stop at right time. Is that true??

This is my first car, swift zxi will it be the right choice?
 
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First of all sorry for those mistakes,It was typed via cell.

There are some people who complains that car doesn't stop at right time. Is that true??

This is my first car, swift zxi will it be the right choice?
First of all, it would be crazy to expect the car to stop if driven at insane speeds. So that statement is very generic (doesnt stop at right time).
Second, it is usually an extremely reliable aid to safe driving, preventing you from losing traction on the road surface due to brake lock.
There are other conditions like the state of the tyres etc. So dont expect miracles. Drive safe and your ABS equipped car will protect you even better than a car without.
The ZXI will also get fatter 185mm tyres, which is an added advantage.
But there are cars with even better dynamic abilities like the Polo/Punto. Are you looking at those ?
 
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Ok thanks alot for your reply. [:D]
Yes Iam interested if it is better then Swift. What will be advantage with polo? I don't want costly servicing too. [roll]

I guess Polo is bit expensive compare to swift
 
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ABS, ESP, EBD and airbags, they are all useful in their own unique ways. The uninformed driver (myself till the recent past) won't feel the need for these features and might intentionally ignore them, mostly while going shopping for a vehicle and digging into the pocket (money matters), until they face a dire situation or the scariest near miss. ABS is of no use if the first-time buyer has wrong notions about its benefits or doesn't know at all how to use it. In my office I see many young guys getting ABS vehicles and they go around saying "I got ABS man so I am safe" but doesn't know what in the world ABS actually does. A friend of mine who's not exactly tight on budget is going for a sedan, and when I told him to go for top model with safety features, he said these are all Western gimmicks since they drive in very high speed there 99% of the time due of traditionally good, wide highways. So I let it be. Can't keep explaining to everyone when the Internet has many good resources on ABS by now.

A top trim sedan with ABS might cost much higher then its medium trim. But about the cost part of a hatch, if going by EMI, getting a hatch with ABS will show a difference of about 2K to 3K higher monthly payment compared to the immediate next lower trim (all factors like down payment, tenure and interest remaining equal).

My primary ride is Alto 800 (i10 secondary and bro's EcoSport sometimes), and I never gave much thought to ABS. Recently, I was doing 90 kmph on DND early morning in the Alto 800. I had to go to Mayur Vihar but couldn't see the left turn approaching as I was lost in music. I braked a bit harder than usual and steered gently, but then wham! Rear wheels skidded for about two-three seconds before I regained control. The incident ruined my breakfast. I could have lost control completely. I was too overconfident with the Alto as I had taken it to Jaisalmer and Udaipur and never ran into such a situation on the highways. There's always a first time to feel the need for ABS. Hope it's also not the last time for anyone.

I had already started a search for a new hatch, and I had made up my mind with the Brio. Will be selling my A800 and i10 soon. And now it's Brio with ABS-EBD I will go for. My A800 mindset is a thing of the past now. In EMI the cost per month is not that high to go for any decent hatch with ABS-EBD. I will gladly pay that 2-3K extra per month than to skid like that again.

As for preference of one safety feature over another, I'd put ABS-EBD first over airbag. I am not comfortable with airbag. In 2012 a motorcycle hit our office Ritz near India Gate at night while coming home and the airbags inflated. We must be doing around 30 kmph since a police barricade was approaching and I clearly remember the driver slowing down, until the motorcycle swerved in the front suddenly and hit head-on in medium speed. It was coming from the wrong side. The airbags ruined the driver's nose and my spectacles smashed my eyebrows with a deep gash. The impact was such that the seatbelts were more than enough. It wasn't that life-threatening. Office took care of the vehicle and I never followed up, except for going to the police station next day and letting go of the motorcycle idiot with a warning to him from the cops as well. Well, that's my experience with safety features or the lack thereof so far.
 

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