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However, Renault’s safety focus is not just on protecting today’s motorists through a range of innovative features incorporated into its vehicles. It is also taking its campaign into schools through its award-winning “Safety Matters” programme. Safety has been a key focus of Renault’s corporate culture since it began its first accidentology and biomechanical studies some 50 years ago. Since then, Renault has constantly introduced innovative approaches to push back the limits and enhance the safety of its products – as witnessed with it becoming the only manufacturer to score the maximum five stars in the Euro NCAP programme with three of its cars. As Renault chairman and chief executive Louis Schweitzer says: “It is our responsibility as a car manufacturer to society as a whole to continually improve safety. If we want cars to remain symbols of freedom, we must work every day to ensure that they no longer equate with shattered lives.” Renault’s newest pioneering safety initiative is the first rear seatbelt airbag, which will debut on the all-new Renault Scenic when it goes on sale in September, before featuring on other models. The initiative follows on from the debut of front seat anti-submarining airbags fitted on the recently-launched Renault Megane Sport hatchback. Both passive safety developments are aimed at further reducing the 40,000 deaths a year on the roads of the European Union by guaranteeing the same optimal level of safety for everyone – driver, front seat and rear seat passengers. A further development sees Renault working on the launch of safety belts with a second load limiter, built into the lap-strap section of the belt and intended to reduce the tension exerted on the pelvis. Rear seatbelt airbag
Renault cars already feature pretensioners and load limiters for rear seatbelts to reduce thoracic injuries. The new Laguna II also features a “special hump” in the seat pan to resist the sliding of the pelvis in the event of an accident, as studies have shown a higher than expected frequency of the submarining phenomenon in the back seats. Simultaneously, the safety-belt anchorage points have been repositioned so that the belt passes across the thighs rather than the stomach. Now comes the rear seatbelt airbag, which has a volume of 60 litres – almost the same as a front seat airbag – and is incorporated within the safety belt. It allows the load exerted by the rear safety belts to be reduced and will provide further-improved head, neck and thorax protection for rear seat passengers. The new airbag will also result in the prevention of children’s heads hitting their knees, as well as of adults’ heads hitting the backs of the front seats. Essentially, the aim with all the developments is to restrain the rear seat passengers – just as with the front seat occupants – to the seat. Front-seat anti-submarining airbag Stopping a person from sliding out of the seat in an accident is crucial in improving occupant safety and it is for that reason that Renault has developed and launched the anti-submarining airbag for front seat occupants. Double pretensioners introduced on safety belts have proved very successful in holding occupants firmly in their seats at the moment of impact. However, that technology cannot be installed in all cars and, most notably, not in three-door models. Therefore, the Megane Sport hatch is the first car to feature an anti-submarining airbag, thus protecting the two front seat occupants from sliding under the lap section of their seat belts by supporting their thighs and pelvis and thereby reducing injuries to the abdomen and lumbar regions. Renault leads Euro NCAP results The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) was launched seven years ago by a consortium of consumer organisations to provide motorists with a star rating system by which they could compare the protection provided by cars in the event of an accident. However, Renault has always worked in advance of crash test standards and it is for that reason that the manufacturer has led the results. The Megane, the International Car of the Year 2003 – the Laguna and the range-topping Vel Satis have all achieved the maximum and rare five-star rating putting each vehicle “best in class” in their respective market sectors. The Laguna was the first car to achieve a five-star rating and the new Megane was the first lower-medium sector vehicle to record the top score. Meanwhile, both the Clio and Espace notched four-star ratings when they were tested in 2000 and 1999 respectively. The Espace’s result continues to rank the vehicle as the safest in its class. The independent Euro NCAP results are proof that Renault has become synonymous with safety. It is calculated that if every car on the UK’s roads were built to the same safety levels of the five-star rated Renaults the number of fatalities on the nation’s roads would reduce by 40% to around 1,100. That is because safety features introduced by Renault protect more people in accidents that occur above 40 mph, where most deaths happen. Road safety and your child Technological developments can and do reduce accident rates, but one of the biggest improvements in road safety can be achieved by drivers. Therefore, road safety is everyone’s business – not just vehicle manufacturers’ – and Renault believes that progress can result from training people from the earliest ages. It is for that reason that the company has embarked on a Europe-wide road safety programme targeting children and young people.
With 90% of all road accidents linked to human behaviour, Renault believes that through its “Safety Matters” education programme it will influence the habits of youngsters, tomorrow’s drivers, thus creating a safer world. Renault aims to inculcate good road sense in children, which they will carry through their lives, as pedestrians, cyclists and tomorrow’s drivers. “Safety Matters” is Renault’s Europe-wide national road safety programme for primary schools, used by teachers, police, road safety officers and Brownie and Cub leaders to improve road safety. In the UK, 15,000 UK primary schools – 60% of all junior schools – have applied for the teaching pack, comprising a teacher’s manual, colour workbooks, video, posters and reflective, fluorescent armbands. The resource fulfils the national curriculum requirement for road safety at Key Stage 2. Analysis of over 1,500 completed questionnaires received from schools revealed that 98% rated the materials very good or excellent, 96% of teachers said that they would use the resource again next year and 84% said they would pass it on to colleagues. The resource has been complemented by children’s puzzle books and guides for parents, national competitions and roadshows. In addition there is a dedicated website, www.safetymatters.renault.co.uk, with sections for teachers, children and parents. In 2002, Renault won the Safety Award at the annual What Car? awards for its all-round approach to safety and for taking the safety message into schools. In the same year, “Safety Matters” won the Zurich Insurance Award for Excellence for Road Safety in the Community. This year, Renault has won a prestigious Prince Michael of Kent International Road Safety Award. The award recognises both the manufacturer’s achievement and innovations which will improve road safety. In making the award the judges said: “The overall corporate commitment to safety is extremely high. Renault now markets its cars on a safety banner, reflecting the depth of its commitment. No other car-maker has done so much, in terms of developing safety features to make its model range safer, or its social programme, notably in its ‘Safety Matters’ campaign.” |
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