Every time a new car comes out there are new safety features and the 2015 Chrysler 200 is no exception to that rule. But, here’s the thing—what does all of that fancy tech actually do on a day-to-day basis to keep you and your family safe? In this case, it’ll actually take the wheel for a second and make sure you don’t drift off the side of the road and into a tree. The future, you’re soaking in it!
There are lots of safety features in every car and things like antilock brakes and airbags are the norm. We see them on the giant list of features, make a mental note, and move along. But some of the safety tech they’re putting in cars these days is getting downright futuristic like the Lane Departure Warning with Lane Keep Assist on the 2015 Chrysler 200.
I had the opportunity to drive the 200 at the vehicle’s recent launch in Louisville, Kentucky and tried out this feature firsthand and it was amazing. If you start to drift out of your lane, the car knows and it lets you know you’re in trouble by giving the wheel a little nudge and putting you back in your lane. Yup, for just an instant, the car drives itself down the road.
There’s a little graphic on the instrument cluster that tells you when the feature is activated so you know it’s on duty and keeping track of what you’re doing. If you turn your signals on, then it has no problem with you going left or right and nothing happens. But, if you don’t signal, and start to drift it will move you back into your lane. You can actually watch the wheel move.
I tried this out and, dang, it was impressive! It knew to move the wheel just the tiniest bit to keep me from going off the road, but it didn’t take the wheel out of my hands. If I’d been doing some emergency maneuver, it wouldn’t have stopped me from steering the car wherever I wanted, but it would have helped if I was drifting. It’s a little scary to think of the car driving for you, but in this case, it was truly reassuring.
In that moment when your mind wanders, or you’re tired, or you’re simply not paying attention like you should be, this little feature could save your life.
You might be wondering how much a car that has something this futuristic costs, and the answer might surprise you. The 2015 Chrysler 200 is not a stripped down sedan but quite a luxurious car. It’s got plenty of standard and available features that can make it even more plush, but you can get behind the wheel of one for a price as low as $21,700. Even fully tricked out it’s $33,400. Not bad at all for a car that packs some impressively futuristic tech that could save your life.
Now, if they can just give it some snarky artificial intelligence like KITT and possibly David Hasselhoff as a co-driver, it’d be perfect.
