Volvo Cars will unveil the EX30 all-new electric small SUV on June 7, and to sweeten the wait, the automaker has shared some details about the model’s safety.
Despite its footprint, the brand's smallest ever SUV – it will slot below the XC40 Recharge and C40 Recharge in Volvo's BEV lineup – will be big on safety. At least that's what the Swedish automaker is promising.
"We're a leader in safety, always have been and always will be, and we will not lower our own bar for safety in the EX30 – it looks after both you and others in hectic urban environments."
For example, the Volvo EX30 will be equipped with a door opening alert, which can warn passengers through visual and audio cues whenever they're about to open the door in front of a passing cyclist or other traffic user.
Volvo says the so-called dooring accidents – when a car door opens inadvertently in the path of a cyclist – make up as much as a fifth of all reported bike accidents in some cities. The automaker also quotes research from Cycling UK that says 60 people on average are killed or seriously injured by car doors each year in the UK alone.
As one of several features of Volvo's Safe Space Technology available on the EX30, the door opening alert should help reduce this type of accidents.
When it comes to passive safety, Volvo says the new EX30 is designed with advanced restraint technology and structural design that meet the brand's ambitious in-house safety requirements based on real-world scenarios.
Since this is a fully electric vehicle, Volvo focused a lot on battery integrity, with the chassis and safety cage being built with "various forms of high-strength steel that offset the impact from a possible crash in an efficient way." The EX30 also includes a far-side airbag on the inside of the driver's seat designed to help reduce head and thorax injuries in side impacts.
As for active safety features, the Volvo EX30 will offer an advanced suite of systems including a new standard driver alert system that uses a special sensor located behind the steering wheel that detects eye and face movements around 13 times per second.
Together with the hands-on detection system in the steering wheel, the sensor that runs on powerful algorithms can help detect driver drowsiness, distraction, or lack of attention.
Another interesting addition is the new intersection auto brake feature designed to help EX30 drivers avoid accidents at intersections. This feature is designed to pull the EX30 to a stop and help mitigate or avoid a collision if another car crosses its path in front unexpectedly.
The Volvo EX30, whose exterior design has already been uncovered in patent images, will make its global debut on June 7, when it will also become available to order or pre-order in selected markets.
