Based on Mazda's safety philosophy, ‘Mazda Proactive Safety’, the all-new Mazda CX-80 provides a comfortable driving environment with outstanding visibility. It’s comprehensive range of advanced i-Activsense driver assistance systems ensure active safety at the highest level and achieved a Euro NCAP 5-star safety rating.
Cruising & Traffic Support (CTS) with new Unresponsive Driver Support; Smart Brake Support (SBS) with new Head-on collision mitigation; and Emergency Lane Keeping (ELK) with new Head-on traffic avoidance assist are all new active safety systems that make their debut on the Mazda CX-80. In addition, a new driver assistance system, the Rear Seat Alert, notifies the driver of objects or passengers still in the rear seats when getting out of the car.
Cruising & Traffic Support (CTS) helps the driver to maintain a safe distance from other vehicles while also offering steering assistance to help stay near the centre of the lane. CTS for the CX-80 can operate at speeds of up to 93mph and further evolves its risk reduction functions to bring greater peace of mind by alerting the driver to hazards in the event of inattentive driving or other unfavourable driving conditions.
Operating only when CTS is on, Unresponsive Driver Support activates if the driver does not operate the steering in an appropriate way for a certain period (hands-off, distraction, drowsiness, illness). It then alerts the driver with escalating warning levels, from meter display (visual) to warning sounds (auditory) and light deceleration (tactile haptic braking). If the driver still fails to respond and resume driving normally, the system will decelerate to a stop to mitigate damage, apply the parking brake, unlock all the doors and beep the horn.
If Head-on collision mitigation determines that there is the possibility of a head-on collision with a vehicle approaching in the opposite direction, a screen display and warning sound notify the driver of the danger. If the possibility of a collision increases, the brake control operates to reduce the damage in the event of a collision.
Emergency Lane Keep Assist (ELK) incorporates three functions: Blind Spot Assist, Road Keep assist and new Head on Traffic Avoidance Assist. When the system detects the possibility of a collision with a vehicle in the adjacent lane (excluding oncoming traffic) due to a lane change or lane departure, it assists the driver in steering the vehicle back to its original lane to mitigate or avoid damage from a collision.
New Head-on traffic avoidance assist adds detection of oncoming traffic and, if the system determines that there is a possibility of a collision due to the vehicle deviating from a lane when running on a road with a central white line, it will immediately intervene to assist the driver in steering the CX-80 back into its original lane.
Rear Seat Alert is a new function alerts the driver of objects or passengers still in the rear seats when getting out of the car, to avoid children or personal items being accidentally left on board. To do this, the vehicle remembers when the rear doors have been opened and shut and will show a notification on the gauge display and sound an in-cabin buzzer if the driver turns off the ignition without also opening either of the rear doors. This helps the driver realise that they may have left their child or personal items in the rear seats.
Various other known Mazda i-Activsense safety features are fitted to the CX-80 as standard. They include Smart Brake Support (SBS) with vehicle, bicycle and pedestrian (day- and night-time) detection. Smart Brake Support (SBS) Front Crossing and Smart Brake Support Rear Crossing (SBS-R). The Lane-keep Assist System (LAS), Traffic Sign Recognition System (TSR), Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) and Driver Attention Alert (DAA).
The CX-80’s passive safety technologies have been designed to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries to drivers, passengers and pedestrians caused by a collision, and to meet the requirements of stricter Euro NCAP frontal collision testing. Three breakthrough technologies combine to deliver optimum frontal collision safety performance: Firstly, the multi-path structure efficiency absorbs energy through main, upper and lower load paths to minimise cabin deformation. Secondly, the axial compression frame doubles energy absorption efficiency. Thirdly, the framework is designed to be a straight as possible, plus the vehicle body joints are strengthened where the roof sides, rear edge of the roof rails, and rear edge of the side sills are connected to the frame members.
The B pillars are designed as a single structure comprised of high- and low-strength sections. The result is that the structure is able to disperse load from crash impact and reduce cabin deformation.
In the event of a rear-end collision, the CX-80 uses axial deformation of the rear side frame for optimal energy absorption. In addition, the location of battery under the floor of the CX-80 ensures its protection in the event of a rear-end collision. The PHEV system’s high-voltage components and battery pack are protected from collision impact by the strength and energy absorbing characteristics of the chassis and body. The battery housing is made of high-strength aluminium material that is highly resistant to cracking.
Other PHEV system safety features include the use of electrical energy dissipation (shutting down power and lowering voltage) that shuts off from the high-voltage battery and discharges its energy when a collision is detected.
To protect elderly passengers, seatbelt load is lowered to reduce the force of the seatbelt on occupants’ chests in the event of an accident. Knee airbags provide restraint around the legs, achieving optimum distribution of restraining force against occupants. As a large number of pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries from car accidents involve injury to the head, legs, or hips, the Mazda CX-80’s bonnet and front bumper face are designed to offer optimum protection of these areas.
To reduce pedestrian head injury and achieve rigidity in a single structure, the hood is designed with a cross-sectional structure that divides it into an upper section that absorbs energy and a lower section that provides rigidity. Furthermore, the design ensures there is sufficient space between this structure and rigid parts under the centre of the hood, such as the engine. The design of the front bumper face ensures ample space between the hood and bumper beam. The weight of the internal structure is also carefully controlled in order to gently absorb leg and hip impact. In order to achieve both the rigidity needed to support the large bumper face and maximise pedestrian protection, the support bracket has been designed to not only optimise the number of points at which the bumper structure is connected to the CX-80’s body, but also soften leg and hip impact in the event of a collision.
As with all models in Mazda’s range the comprehensive range of active and passive safety features are designed to help avoid and if needed mitigate accidents, all while at the same time not compromising the driver and car and one ethos that’s at the heart of every Mazda.