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Volvo imposes speed limits on cars to prioritise safety

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Wed, 6 Mar 2019, 9:15AM
Volvo says the move will help with road safety. (Photo / 123RF)

Volvo imposes speed limits on cars to prioritise safety

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Wed, 6 Mar 2019, 9:15AM

Volvo Cars has announced it will limit the top speed of its new cars at 180 kilometres per hours (112 miles per hour) in all markets as of next year because "too many people get seriously injured or even killed because of excessive speeding."

From next year, all new Volvo vehicles will have a maximum speed of 180 kilometres per hour.

It's the first step in the company's aim for no deaths or serious injuries in any of its cars from 2020.

Volvo general manager Coby Duggan told Mike Hosking it was long due for a speed reduction, especially in New Zealand where the roads are very different compared to Europe and America.

"180kmh has been a number which has been identified by our head office colleagues. At the moment our range is 200kmh to 250kmh at the top end. In the European markets where we are looking, there has been a need for higher limits.

"For the New Zealand market in particular, those speeds have absolutely no place here."

Duggan says that Volvo has a responsibility to ensure that they are doing all they can to prioritise customer safety.

"It is about recognising the fact that although cars have become more intelligent and advanced over time, driver behaviour and speed have a massive role to play."

When asked on how the company has been performing overall, Duggan was upbeat about the year ahead, despite challenging conditions for the automobile industry.

"It has been an interesting start to the year. Last year was particularly challenging for a number of brands. In general terms, we are in reasonable shape. It's always interesting to continue from a record year, with 2018 being a really good year for us."

Volvo is also looking into methods of combining speed limiting and geofencing to limit speeds automatically around schools and hospitals.

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