Photo: Daimler AG
Now available in no less than 16 different model series right across the entire Mercedes-Benz model range, the Pre-Safe active safety system will soon turning 15 years since it was first thought of in terms of series-production development.
According to a popular Mercedes-Benz insider myth that eventually turned out to be true, the first idea for the Pre-Safe system came when one of the engineers in charge of active safety asked his eight-year old daughter how she would illustrate the fact that every living being reacts reflexively to sudden dangers.
His daughter apparently simply handed him a Mickey Mouse comic book, where one page showed a drawing of a cat dropping to its feet, symbolizing how the animal automatically prepares its body position and posture before hitting the ground for a better landing.
That, along with the fact that Mercedes-Benz has almost since forever been using real world crashes data to make their cars safer has triggered the development of Pre-Safe.
First introduced in its most basic form in 2002, on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class W220 facelift, Pre-Safe has since evolved into a number adjacent systems, which are all now slowly gathering under the Intelligent Drive umbrella.
Compared to 2012, Pre-Safe can currently take preventive safety measures in up to 13 potentially hazardous accident scenarios, including the detection of pedestrians or impending rear-end collisions.
Brought first by the E-Class W212 facelift and the new S-Class W222, Pre-Safe Plus can flash the rear hazard warning lights and locks the brakes if the vehicle is stationary and a non-avoidable rear impact is incoming.
Pre-Safe Impulse, on the other hand, extends the protective function of the front seat belts, with the front occupants being pulled away from the direction of the impact just before it happens. More features of the system are on the way in the upcoming years, with the new E-Class W213 to sport quite a few of them in the further developed Intelligent Drive.
His daughter apparently simply handed him a Mickey Mouse comic book, where one page showed a drawing of a cat dropping to its feet, symbolizing how the animal automatically prepares its body position and posture before hitting the ground for a better landing.
That, along with the fact that Mercedes-Benz has almost since forever been using real world crashes data to make their cars safer has triggered the development of Pre-Safe.
First introduced in its most basic form in 2002, on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class W220 facelift, Pre-Safe has since evolved into a number adjacent systems, which are all now slowly gathering under the Intelligent Drive umbrella.
Compared to 2012, Pre-Safe can currently take preventive safety measures in up to 13 potentially hazardous accident scenarios, including the detection of pedestrians or impending rear-end collisions.
Brought first by the E-Class W212 facelift and the new S-Class W222, Pre-Safe Plus can flash the rear hazard warning lights and locks the brakes if the vehicle is stationary and a non-avoidable rear impact is incoming.
Pre-Safe Impulse, on the other hand, extends the protective function of the front seat belts, with the front occupants being pulled away from the direction of the impact just before it happens. More features of the system are on the way in the upcoming years, with the new E-Class W213 to sport quite a few of them in the further developed Intelligent Drive.
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