Muscle Cars
Muscle Car Safety: It’s Never Been Better
While we all love muscle cars for their performance, it would be nice if they would catch up to the modern technology on most new cars. The good news is that more safety systems are being offered by the Ford Mustang, Chevy Camaro, and Dodge Challenger this year.
What does this mean for a muscle car owner? Well if you’ve got these systems, you are less likely to get into a situation where a crash occurs. You are less likely to scratch or damage your muscle car. And, you can protect your insurance rates by staying out of fender benders.
Should you value your trade or wait another year? Let’s take a look at the new safeguards offered in the three leading Muscle cars.
2021 Ford Mustang
The Mustang has the most standard features of the three. The pre-collision assist system includes pedestrian detection and a forward collision warning. It has dynamic brake support to assist the driver. Automatic braking is also part of the system just in case.
The lane-keep assist is a warning with an automatic straightening capability. The blind spot monitor has no automatic features, but it lets the driver know if there is a car too close for a safe lane change. This system has a rear cross-traffic warning for safer parking maneuvers. The Pony car even has rain-sensing wipers and automatic high beams as standards.
Only adaptive cruise control is left as an option. This desirable system can regulate speed to match traffic. While a Pony car driver tends to love the open road, they will appreciate having this system when they are in slow-and-go traffic situations.
Ford is clearly calculating that those in search of a new sports car may be persuaded to put the Mustang at the top of the list. The package of technology would be expensive to purchase separately, and it is competitive with more conventional cars.
2021 Chevy Camaro
The newest Camaro is the only one to offer the rear camera mirror feature. It can switch between a regular mirror and a digital screen that shows a wide rear image. This optional feature is one of many offered on higher trim levels. Chevy is offering a blind spot monitor and a forward collision alert as options on lower trim levels. Other options include the rear cross-traffic alert and a GM-product called the Lane Change Alert, which is a more active system as a backup to the blind spot monitor.
2021 Dodge Challenger
Like the Camaro, the Challenger doesn’t offer its equipment as standard. It is offering a full-speed forward-collision warning with active braking. There is a blind-spot monitor with the usual cross-traffic warning. There’s also adaptive cruise control and automatic high beams on the menu.
Final Analysis
Ford clearly has taken the lead on crash avoidance systems, making them all standards. It is surprising given that Chevrolet isn’t even offering automatic braking or adaptive cruise control on the Camaro. The Challenger slots in between the two, offering more like the Ford but keeping everything options like the Chevrolet.
All three Muscle cars have rear view cameras and the latest stability controls. The Camaro and Mustang both have two extra airbags. These are airbags for the driver and front passenger.
While safety isn’t nearly as fun as performance, it’s still good to know that the three famous Muscle cars are being modernized in this way. Now, if self-driving Muscle cars go on sale, you can count me out.
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