Subaru Focus Turns to EyeSightT

MELBOURNE – Sept 5, 2011: Subaru has confirmed its EyeSight safety system featured at this year’s Australian International Motor Show, will go on sale in 2012 Liberty 3.6R Premium and Outback 3.6R Premium models.

Extensively tested in Australia, EyeSight will be standard equipment in these variants, going on sale in December.

Nick Senior, Managing Director, Subaru Australia, said: “EyeSight continues Subaru’s strong commitment to safety – active safety, passive safety and now preventative safety. We are immensely proud that we can introduce this technology on circa $50,000 vehicles.

“We have plans to roll it out on other models over the next couple of years and before the end of the decade it is likely to be standard across the range.

“Every week we see stories about cars crashing through car park barriers and walls. One of EyeSight’s seven key features, Pre-Collision Throttle Management, is aimed at massively reducing the likelihood of this happening by basically inhibiting the engine in such situations.

“Another feature is the lane departure warning. This alerts the driver if the system determines that the car is drifting across clearly marked lanes. This could well be an early warning signal of driver fatigue.

“There are some EyeSight features that have previously only been available on premium priced cars, in some cases, costing up to four times what our vehicles will.

“It makes for a compelling safety package, of which insurers will hopefully take note when it comes to premiums.

“The other clever aspect of EyeSight is that it doesn’t rely on combinations of additional complex technologies, such as microwave and radar – it’s a relatively simple stereo camera system, which delivers comparable results to many competitors without a massive price premium.”

He added: “Subaru has a rock-solid reputation for safety. Every one of our current line-up has an independent five-star rating for occupant safety from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) and EyeSight only extends that commitment even further.

EyeSight’s seven key functions are:

Pre-Collision Throttle Management - helps avoid/reduce impact in car park accidents.

Close to a barrier or large object in front of the car (such as a wall or vehicle at close range) the throttle is inhibited, even if the accelerator is fully applied. EyeSight helps minimise or potentially avoid impact. It can also help to reduce impacts in situations when “Drive” is accidentally selected instead of “Reverse” (such as when a driver is intending to reverse out of a parking space).

Adaptive Cruise Control –maintains a safe distance from the ‘target’ car in front.

Irrespective of the varying speed of the car in front, the EyeSight vehicle keeps a safe distance. It works across the Subaru’s full speed range. It even has the ability to bring the Subaru to a complete standstill and then resume moving when the “lead vehicle” moves off.

Pre-Collision Braking – applies the brakes when a vehicle ahead is detected slowing or stopping suddenly (and the Subaru driver has failed to apply the brakes).

Pre-Collision Brake Assist – if the system determines that a collision is highly likely and the driver applies the brakes, the system can generate 1G maximum deceleration to help reduce impact or damage.

Lane Departure Warning - alerts the driver if the system determines that the car is drifting across clearly marked lanes.

Vehicle Sway Warning - alerts the driver if the car starts to sway from one side of the road to another, which may occur with fatigue.

Lead Vehicle Start Alert - when the EyeSight-equipped vehicle is stopped and the vehicle in front starts to move, the driver receives an audible reminder and information display indicator notifying them that the vehicle in front has moved.