Pickup trucks are the most popular passenger vehicle on the American road today, and as a result of this popularity, more trucks are involved in accidents than any other type of vehicle. However, less pickups are equipped with active safety features like Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) than other vehicles, despite research that shows these technologies drastically reduce accident prevalence.
In a study performed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), there was a 43 percent reduction in the rate of crashes for trucks equipped with AEB than those without it. Meanwhile, rear-end crashes fell 42 percent, while serious and fatal injury crash rate plummeted 77 percent (not statistically significant).
“These numbers confirm that AEB is reducing crashes for pickups, just as it is for cars, SUVs and large trucks,” said Jessica Cicchino, vice president of research at IIHS. “The faster automakers can make sure that every pickup they sell has this important safety feature, the better.”
As context, these 2023 model-year GM trucks have the following active safety features equipped as standard, unless otherwise specified (relevant RPO code in parentheses):
2023 Chevy Colorado and 2023 GMC Canyon:
- Automatic Emergency Braking (UHY)
- Front Pedestrian Braking with Bicyclist Detection (UKT)
- Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning (UHX)
- Following Distance Indicator (UE4)
- Forward Collision Alert (UEU)
- Intellibeam (TQ5)
2023 Chevy Silverado 1500 and 2023 GMC Sierra 1500:
- Automatic Emergency Braking (UHY)
- Front Pedestrian Braking (UKJ)
- Lan Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning (UHX)
- Following Distance Indicator (UE4)
- Forward Collision Alert (UEU)
- Intellibeam (TQ5)
- Forward Collision Alert (UEU) (optional on all trim levels except LT, on which it isn’t offered)
- Automatic Emergency Braking (UHY) (optional on all trim levels except LT, on which it isn’t offered)
- Forward Collision Alert (UEU) (optional on all trim levels except Denali, on which it’s standard)
- Automatic Emergency Braking (UHY) (optional on all trim levels except Denali, on which it’s standard)
2022 and 2023 GMC Hummer EV Pickup:
- Forward Collision Alert (UEU)
- Following Distance Indicator (UE4)
- Enhanced Automatic Emergency Braking (UGN)
- Front Pedestrian Braking (UKJ)
- Reverse Automatic Braking (UVZ)
- Rear Cross Traffic Alert (UFG)
- Rear Pedestrian Alert (UKK)
- IntelliBeam (TQ5)
Indeed, GM has many standard safety features equipped on its pickup lineup. However, to further increase the safety of these trucks, the IIHS suggests that automakers move forward and equip new models with newer AEB technology, rather than playing catch-up with existing models.
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Comments
Genius assessment.
The NHTSA AEB mandate already requires 1/2 ton and smaller (<8500 GVWR) trucks to have AEB as of this past September. The HD trucks are due by 2025.
To be honest my suv has it and all it does is false braking at shadows or other vehicles not even in front of me.
I tire of brake testing people with an automated system.
Ditto. I’ve almost been killed by these safety features. I rented a Camry (not by choice, it was all enterprise had left) and was passing a wide load. The auto lane assist didn’t like that I was giving it extra room and forced me back towards the center, and most crashed me into the load. And for about 30 seconds I was swerving all over the place as the assist and I kept fighting. I had to pull over and spend 5 minutes looking for the dissable.
Safety features aren’t always safe. OSHA also needs to learn this. Most their refs are just impractical.
Exactly. I go out my way to find vehicles that don’t have auto braking or auto centering. These damn systems cannot handle real world scenarios.
I don’t want the vehicle attempting to override my intentional too-close to the vehicle in front of me, not centered in the lane, when I had to be both in order to escape the lane and avoid being in an accident.
I have been in this situation numerous times over my last 35 years of driving, and on the occasions where I was, had the vehicle attempted to override my emergency driving, the vehicle would have prevented me from escaping the accident, or worse, gotten me killed.
I know how to drive. I don’t tailgate. I stay in my lane. Every time I drive, I know where I’m going. I always get in the lanes I need to be in and stay there until I reach the destination. If everyone else did the same, the would be far less accidents. And everyone with a driver’s license needs to have been taught how to drive, and be able to drive, and not be assisted by systems to compensate for their lack of skill or attention while driving. If you cannot operate the vehicle or pay attention while driving you have no business being on the road.
“I know how to drive” yet you give countless instances where you have to fight a system because you are doing something out of the norm. I drive countless vehicles with this stuff, never am I fighting the system, so maybe the problem isn’t the system but the one behind the wheel and it is in fact doing its job…
When a system freaks out over a shadow, I understand it being a system issue, the F150 had that for a bit. I think most systems have zero issue with that, a bunch of leaves I can see as that is an object, still the scenarios where it freaks out are pretty slim and I am hearing multiple stories per person which leads me to believe it is user error.
I am not a huge fan of these systems, but they are able to be turned off. It does significantly help with crashes as people today are hugely distracted (they should pay attention but that is the age we live in), so to prevent more accidents it is needed and those that don’t can turn it off…
I have been rear-ended three times in my 2012 Silverado. By two cars and an SUV, never by a truck. Let’s just teach people to pay attention and drive! But I do like my shiny new bumper!