Cycling Pileup Shows the Unexpected Dangers of Vehicle Safety Aids

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

Thanks to a pact among the world’s largest automakers, automated emergency braking will soon be standard kit on nearly every new vehicle, paving the way for a future of collision-free bliss. That’s the plan, anyway. While undoubtedly a valuable addition to the automotive landscape, self-thinking vehicle safety systems sometimes reveal their dark side.

That’s what happened Wednesday during the Abu Dhabi Tour — a big-deal cycling race in a locale where hydration no doubt takes on new importance. Fluids weren’t top of mind for five of the cyclists, however, as their race was cut short by a Mercedes-Benz with a mind of its own.

According to Cycling News, a resource we couldn’t do without, the incident occured after the lead car — a Mercedes-Benz E-Class — braked suddenly as a pack of cyclists rode just aft of its rear bumper. In the ensuing jam, five riders took a spill.

“I didn’t see it happen, but there was word going around that a lot of the cars have the automatic braking system, and if they don’t disengage that, then as soon as a bike rider comes close, it brakes,” Dimension Data team member Mark Renshaw said. Another team member, Mark Cavendish, was forced to abandon the race due to whiplash and a concussion.

Flanking the Benz at the time were two motorcycles, though those vehicles rode in separate lanes. Ahead of the car was open road; nothing to trigger forward-facing collision-avoidance sensors. So, what safety system slows a car when approached from the year? In an E-Class, blame Pre-Safe Plus. The system applies the vehicle’s brakes when it senses an impending collision from a vehicle approaching from the rear. As the Benz was travelling at speed, it mistook the cyclists on its rear bumper as an imminent threat. (The brake application aims to prevent the car from travelling into further danger following a collision.)

While the incident didn’t stop the race, RCS Sport race director Stefano Allocchio was forced to reassure riders that the marauding German cars would be neutered. Allocchio confirmed the braking story while promising a safer route in the days ahead. This should prove reassuring, as the Abu Dhabi Tour is a five-day stage race apparently milling with self-aware Benz sedans.

“The car braked by itself,” Allocchio explained. “Unfortunately, these are things that happen. This evening, we’ll have a technician deactivate it on the all the cars because we don’t want to risk it happening again.”

[Image: Daimler AG]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 44 comments
  • Shortest Circuit Shortest Circuit on Feb 22, 2018

    I've wrote about this before, that darned Lane Assist in a new C-Class almost made me mow down an unsuspecting cyclist by slamming the RF brake on when I tried to pass him. The smug salesman even had the nerve to tell me that I need to indicate before changing lanes, that way the system knows I do it intentionally. Mercedes is a menace to cyclists.

  • Turbo_awd Turbo_awd on Feb 22, 2018

    Wonder how it would react to lane-splitting motorcyclists in CA? If it starts braking when a motorcycle swerves behind it for 1 second.. I don't even want to think about it..

    • Stuki Stuki on Feb 22, 2018

      Assuming these systems aren't all deactivated on cars sold in Asian and Mediterranean cities, they have to be able to cope in one way or the other. Scooterists will cut around cars, sometimes literally stepping on their front bumpers, in those places. Ditto cyclists all over Europe. Volvo needs to add a big airbag to the rear exterior of any car equipped with such a system, that's for sure. Or maybe Mercedes themselves, who supposedly was the "real inventor" of all the safety tech Volvo is famous for....

  • The Oracle Well, we’re 3-4 years in with the Telluride and right around the time the long term durability issues start to really take hold. This is sad.
  • CoastieLenn No idea why, but nothing about a 4Runner excites me post-2004. To me, they're peak "try-hard", even above the Wrangler and Gladiator.
  • AZFelix A well earned anniversary.Can they also attend to the Mach-E?
  • Jalop1991 The intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft may not be fully engaged due to suspected improper assembly by the supplier. Over time, partial engagement can cause damage to the intermediate shaft splines. Damaged shaft splines may result in unintended vehicle movement while in Park if the parking brake is not engagedGee, my Chrysler van automatically engages the parking brake when we put it in Park. Do you mean to tell me that the idjits at Kia, and the idjit buyers, couldn't figure out wanting this in THEIR MOST EXPENSIVE VEHICLE????
  • Dukeisduke I've been waiting to see if they were going to do something special for the 60th Anniversary. I was four years old when the Mustang was introduced. I can remember that one of our neighbors bought a '65 coupe (they were all titled as '65 models, even the '64-1/2 cars), and it's the first one I can remember seeing. In the '90s I knew an older gentleman that owned a '64-1/2 model coupe with the 260 V8.
Next