Vehicle Safety refers to those issues concerned with the vehicle itself.
Find out more information on those components and design aspects of vehicles which either help to avoid a crash occurring or protect the occupants when a crash occurs. This section includes discussion on seat belts, air bags, towbars and towing, vehicle lighting, braking, steering and handling.
Electronic Stability Control
Electronic Stability Program (ESP®) is an active safety system that helps prevent crashes by reducing the danger of skidding. Also known as Electronic Stability Control (ESC), ESP® additionally incorporates the functions of Anti-lock Braking Systems (ABS) and Traction Control to stabilise the vehicle when it deviates from the driver's steered direction.
Car Colour
The idea that some vehicle colours are safer than others seem to be ingrained into the psyche of average Western Australian motorists. Most of us believe that our car is an extension of our personality. Psychologists have long sought to identify common stereotypes within society by reference to the colour, size and shape of car an individual chooses to drive. According to a 1997 survey by RAC colour, in particular, sends a clear message to other motorists. For instance: 
Colour Contrasts
Our ability to perceive objects depends upon the contrast they have with their background and other objects around them. The most commonly given reason by drivers involved in a crash is that they didn't see the vehicle early enough to take evasive action.
- A number of studies have shown the colour difference between a target and its background plays a major role in determining its conspicuity (or visibility).
- A set of nine colours, which have maximum contrast and give a satisfactory contrast for red-green deficient and colour-normal observers, was identified in 1965. In essence, black contrasts maximally with white; yellow with black; purple with yellow etc.
- Where the background is primarily a dark grey, such as the urban road environment, yellow would be the optimum choice.
- In rural environments yellow would not provide a great contrast during summer, for instance.
- White will give the greatest brightness contrast (because it has highest reflectivity) but will not give any chromatic contrast.
- In dull overcast conditions or rain and fog, a white car would provide a poor colour contrast.
- Another variation of this colour contrast concept is to create the contrast on the vehicle itself, such as the black livery on RAC's yellow Road Service vans.
- The use of 'daytime running lights' significantly increases the distance from which a car, irrespective of colour, can be seen.
- The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) found the distance an oncoming vehicle could be detected from increased from approximately 630 m to over 1,430 m, if lights were used.
- Since 1997, RAC has promoted daytime running lights with increasing success.
- RAC recognises that lights, not colour, is a more effective means of increasing the visibility of cars and thereby reducing the number of crashes occurring on our roads.