What can the lane departure prevention system be used for?

Mercedes-Benz vehicles are equipped with a host of safety features. It's a real eye-opener. These, of course, are there to warn us of potential hazards and reduce the risk of collisions.

However, there are so many of them that we sometimes forget what they're really good for. Yes, their name describes their mission, but we have to go beyond that and look at how they can help us in a concrete way.

Take the Active Lane Keeping Assist lane departure prevention system, for example. Let's take a brief look at how it works and then look at the kinds of situations where it can help us.

How it works

The system monitors the position of our vehicle in its lane. If we deviate from the lane without activating our turn signal, the system will activate, first with an alert to inform us of the deviation and then an intervention to get us back in our lane.

When driving

At the wheel, when you're well concentrated on the road, the device can be annoying, because you sometimes feel the management want to put you back in control when you're in full control. However, there are situations where the system can really help. Here are three of them.

A blinding sun

You've been in this situation before. You're driving on a highway and the sun is blinding you as much as possible. Worse, the pavement is wet, and the sun's reflections are blinding you in some places. Think about it, it only takes a 3 or 4 second sequence where you can't see anything in heavy traffic for a quiet ride to turn into a disaster. With Active Lane Keeping Assist on, if you are blinded and can no longer see the limits of the road, your Mercedes-Benz will make sure you stay in the center of your lane. A simple intervention that can save you from a very unfortunate situation.

The entrance to a tunnel

Another situation where one can find oneself completely blinded is at the entrance of a tunnel on a day when the sun is dazzling. In this case, it's simple, your eyes can't work miracles. At the entrance of the tunnel, you will be blinded, and it will take a few seconds before you regain acceptable vision. Without a system, you can deviate towards other cars or a concrete wall. With the system in place, the car will once again come and support you.

Fatigue

The ideal is to never take the road when you are tired. However, fatigue can occur without warning, and a system that allows our vehicle to stay in its lane can become a valuable ally. Above all, if you notice that it has to intervene a few times, it means that your concentration is not optimal; it's time to stop for a nap.

And the list of such examples is long. In fact, when everything is going well, you don't always see the need for such a system. It's when things get out of hand that he's there for us and we can fully appreciate his work.