The Mazda6 – Class-leading safety from sensor and camera-based i-ACTIVSENSE systems

• Intelligent sensor and camera based i-ACTIVSENSE active safety systems help the driver recognise and effectively avoid potential hazards.
• Six airbags, anti-lock brakes with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution, Brake Assist, Hill Hold Assist, Dynamic Stability Control, Traction Control System, Emergency Stop Signalling, Tyre Pressure Monitoring System and ISOFIX child seat anchors on the two outer rear seats fitted as standard.
• The optional Safety Pack for Sport Nav models features Adaptive LED Headlights (ALH), Lane-keep Assist System (LAS), Rear Smart City Brake Support (Rr SCBS) and Blind Spot Monitoring with Rear Cross Traffic Alert (BSM w/RCTA).

The Mazda6 is equipped with Mazda’s advanced and intelligent driver-supporting ‘i-ACTIVSENSE’ technologies to deliver class-leading active safety performance over a wide range of driving conditions. Developed from Mazda’s Proactive Safety philosophy, they aim to minimise the risk of an accident by helping the driver recognise hazards, maximise the range of conditions in which the driver can safely operate the vehicle, and then reduce the severity of accidents when they cannot be avoided for both occupants and pedestrians.

By using a forward facing camera that monitors road markings, Mazda’s Lane-keep Assist System (LAS) with Driver Attention Alert provides steering wheel vibration and assisted steering if the driver strays from the middle of the chosen lane at speeds over 37mph. The system ‘learns’ a driver’s particular style of driving, and is capable of alerting drivers and advising them to take a break if it detects a fatigue-induced degradation of driving style.

In addition, Smart City Brake Support system automatically stops or reduces the speed of the car, when there is a risk of collision with the vehicle in front at speeds from 9mph to 99mph, while Rear Smart City Brake Support (Rr SCBS) operates at reversing speeds of between 1 to 5mph to automatically apply the brakes if the system detects an imminent rear impact.

Other standout features for the optional Safety Pack are the Blind Spot Monitoring with Rear Cross-Traffic Alert (BSM w/ RCTA). Combining two systems in one for greater safety, they scan a larger area to the rear of the vehicle for other road users. The Rear Cross-Traffic Alert employs the same system sensors to detect pedestrians, bicycles and other vehicles during reversing manoeuvres.

Nocturnal safety is enhanced in the optional Safety Pack by sophisticated Adaptive LED Headlights (ALH), which automatically adjusts the array of high beam illumination to avoid dazzling the occupants of both oncoming and preceding vehicles, without the need to switch to low beam lighting.

These driver-supporting active safety systems work hand in glove with the Mazda6’s SKYACTIV-Body, which provides an incredibly strong and lightweight protective safety cell around driver and passengers.

The benefits of the sophisticated Smart City Brake Support continues to be recognised by the Association of British Insurers, which acknowledges the immense value of autonomous braking systems in boosting safety and reducing the cost of repairs.

Active Safety

The Mazda6 optional Safety Pack, available on all Sport Nav models, comes with Blind Spot Monitoring with Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Rear Smart City Brake Support, and Adaptive LED headlights.

The Blind Spot Monitoring system detects vehicles approaching from behind that might be lost in blind spots. It alerts the driver via Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) in the appropriate side mirror. If the driver disregards an alert and activates the indicators to initiate a lane change, the LED blinks and a strident buzzer sounds in the instrument panel. This system works in conjunction with the Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, which employs the same system sensors to detect pedestrians, bicycles and other vehicles when reversing.

Rear Smart City Brake Support (Rr SCBS) works alongside Mazda’s acclaimed Smart City Brake Support (SCBS) safety system. Together these advanced driver aids play a vital role in avoiding low-speed collisions or minimising their effects. Using a near-infrared sensor mounted on the windscreen to constantly monitor preceding vehicles at a range of up to around six metres, SCBS primes the brakes to remove any play in the pedal if its detects a collision is imminent. If the driver does not respond to potential obstruction ahead, SCBS automatically applies the brakes, significantly reducing the intensity of a collision at speeds up to approximately 99mph. Similarly, at the rear, the Rr SCBS minimises the risk of low-speed collision while reversing at speeds between 1 – 5mph.

This is complemented by (LAS) Lane-keep Assist System with Driver Attention Alert which uses a camera mounted at the top of the windscreen to monitor the proximity of lane markings and determines whether or not the vehicle is about to stray from its lane. It warns drivers via steering wheel vibration and assisted steering if they do unintentionally depart from their chosen lane. The intelligent system also ‘learns’ a driver’s particular style of driving, alerting drivers to take a break if a fatigue-induced degradation of driving style is detected.

Mazda’s Adaptive LED Headlights (ALH) system allows high beams to be used even when following or approaching other vehicles. The system uses a camera at the top of the windscreen to detect the headlights of oncoming vehicles at a distance of 600m and the taillights of preceding cars at a distance of 500m. It reduces the level of high beam illumination for the area around an oncoming car area only by switching its individual LED bulbs on and off.

Similarly, the pattern of the LED lights is changed to ensure drivers in traffic ahead are not dazzled while still delivering excellent levels of illumination for the Mazda6 driver. The ALH further enhances nocturnal safety by following steering inputs, and directing the headlamps accordingly enabling the driver to see around bends at night.

If the driver brakes in an emergency, the Emergency Brake Assist will ensure maximum braking power is applied and the hazard warning lights are activated to warn following drivers.

To boost ease of driving, Hill Hold Assist controls brake pressure to help prevent the vehicle from rolling back during hill starts, ensuring safe and smooth starts on uphill gradients of two degrees or more.

A further driver-assistance feature is the Adjustable Speed Limiter. Standard on Sport Nav models, this can be used to limit vehicle speed above 20mph. The system will prevent the vehicle from being driven over the selected speed by limiting power, making it the ideal safety system when driving through speed-restricted areas.

If the driver wishes to exceed the set speed limit, then the system can be deactivated by either pressing the ‘Cancel’ button mounted on the steering wheel, which temporarily disengages the limiter, or by fully depressing the accelerator pedal. The system can be re-engaged by pressing the ‘Res’ button and allowing the vehicle speed to fall below the set limit, or by setting a new speed limit.

These driver-assistance systems are backed up by an extensive range of standard-fit electronic driver aids, including Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Emergency Brake Assist (EBA), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) and Traction Control System (TCS).

Drivers of the Mazda6 will also benefit from exceptionally high levels of visibility. The combination of mounting the wing mirrors on the doors and the rearward position of the A-pillar offers a very wide horizontal viewing angle – 29.3 degrees on the driver’s side and 61.6 degrees on the front passenger’s side. The location of the A-pillars also improves the driver’s vertical viewing angle, making it easier to see smaller objects as short as 70cm.

Table of i-ACTIVSENSE technologies

Passive Safety

All Mazda6 models in the UK are fitted with six airbags – dual front, side airbags and full-length curtain airbags – as standard, as well as front seatbelts with pre-tensioners and load limiters, to mitigate chest impact.

The optimised side and curtain airbags are of a larger capacity to not only cover the pelvis but also offer higher levels of impact protection to the chest and abdomen. Naturally, the head areas for both front and rear occupants are fully covered.

These airbags are backed up by ABS anti-lock brakes with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution, Brake Assist, Hill Hold Assist, Dynamic Stability Control and Traction Control System, all fitted as standard.

The Mazda6’s incredibly robust and lightweight SKYACTIV-Body and SKYACTIV-Chassis architecture forms the ideal platform for effectively absorbing impact energy and offering exceptional driver and passenger protection. Like the Mazda CX-5 Compact Crossover SUV, the Mazda6 uses extremely strong and lightweight 1,800MPa ultra-high tensile steel, which is employed in the front and rear bumpers, and offers exceptional initial impact resistance. No surprise then that the Mazda6 achieves a full five-star Euro-NCAP crashworthiness rating.

The clean-sheet design of the body is marked out by its use of continuous framework design, in which every body section functions in a coordinated manner with those around it. This has resulted in a body that fully facilitates the distribution of impact energy throughout the body structure in a front, side or rear impact.

Mazda’s engineers also developed the underside of the body to have as few curves as possible. Together with the continuous framework construction, this continuously bonded straight frame configuration creates a cohesive three-tier structure to effectively channel and dissipate impact energy: a lower level path through the underbody, a central path through the sides of the body and a raised path through to the A-pillar.

The integrity of the body was further boosted by the decision to introduce four key circular reinforcing structures of closed section steel:

• a closed section that linked the front and rear suspension mounts via the A and C pillars.
• a closed section that ran through the side sills, A and B pillars and roof.
• a closed section that joined the underbody and roof via the B pillars.
• a closed section that linked the rear damper mounts to increase the stiffness of the rear end.

Mazda also opted for a weld bonding system for the roof rail section. Previously, this structure was separated from the rear frame due to the body assembly process, but by bonding these sections together before assembly – and consequently significantly increasing the number of spot weld points – they were able to dramatically increase the rigidity of the body.

Particular attention was also paid to how the key structures – engine, steering, suspension and transmission – interact during a collision. This resulted in the new front strut suspension structure being designed so that the engine breaks away from the suspension cross members in the event of an impact, maximising energy absorption by creating a larger crumple zone.

The doors of the Mazda6 also feature an impact beam layout that offers greater side-impact protection. The front doors feature two impact beams – an upper beam with a round cross-section, and a lower beam with a double-ridged cross-section – while the rear doors are fitted with a rear beam that has a double-ridged cross-section. In addition, shock-absorbing material is housed within the door trim to further reduce side-impact energy levels.

The seats in the Mazda6 not only provide excellent support and comfort, but also offer outstanding protection against whiplash and submarining during a rear-end collision. The lightweight anti-whiplash chairs feature reinforced head-rests, seatbacks and seat lifters that together restrict movement and rotation of the head, chest and hips during an accident. The resulting shear and tensile loads on the neck are among the lowest in the segment for front occupants.

As you’d expect, the front seatbelts combine pre-tensioners to tighten the belts during a frontal accident and load limiters to avoid excessive pressure on the chest, while ISOFIX connections on the outer rear seats with top tether anchors ensure quick and secure child seat installation. High-tensile steel has also been deployed at the rear of the luggage compartment to ensure the boot contents do not enter the passenger compartment during emergency braking manoeuvres or a rear impact.

Pedestrian Safety

The Mazda6’s safety network also extends to other road users, with meticulous attention paid to lowering the risk of pedestrian impact injury. Despite both Saloon and Tourer models featuring a low and chiselled bonnet line that makes it difficult to build in deep crumple zones above the front suspension towers, Mazda’s safety engineers have ensured it exceeds all current European pedestrian impact legislation by fitting the following features:

• bonnet hinges that yield vertically (downwards) to help prevent head injuries but without diminishing their longitudinal (or horizontal) strength, which inhibits the bonnet from moving back towards the cabin.
• a high-density material that sits on top of the wing brackets that deform in a controlled manner during an accident to absorb the impact from a pedestrian, yet still resist deformation if someone simply leans on them.
• the rear engine cowling was optimised to soften under impact to lower the chance of head injuries, while also enhancing NVH reduction levels.
• the energy-absorbing foam used on the front bumper reinforcing member delivers greater protection to pedestrians’ legs, with the introduction of a stiffer lower guard to prevent a pedestrian’s legs becoming trapped beneath the car.