Terms to recognise
You may see these abbreviations on the dashboard or in the manual.
- Rijhulpsysteem
- A driver-assistance system. The driver remains responsible.
- Adaptieve cruisecontrol (ACC)
- Adaptive cruise control: adjusts speed for a detected vehicle ahead and supports following distance.
- Automatisch noodremsysteem (AEB)
- Automatic emergency braking: may brake when it detects a collision risk.
- ABS
- Anti-lock braking: helps prevent wheel lock during hard braking.
- ESC
- Electronic stability control: helps stabilise a car that begins to slip.
- Rijstrookassistent
- Lane-keeping assistance: may help with unintended lane departure.
1. Before setting off
Before driving an unfamiliar car, find out which driver-assistance systems it has and what they do.
- Controls, names and alerts can differ between cars. Read the manual or ask for an explanation while the car is stationary.
- Adjust your seat so you can steer and use the pedals fully.
- Even with speed or distance assistance, you must be ready to brake yourself at any time.
- Check the settings before you resume a stored cruising speed. Learning the controls before the trip means you do not have to search for them while moving. A late collision warning leaves less time to react than an early one.
Know the car before setting off.
2. Cameras and sensors
Driver-assistance systems use cameras and sensors, including radar.
- Before a trip, check that the area in front of a camera or sensor is clean. Mud on the windscreen may block a camera even when you can still see the road clearly.
- Bright low sunlight can also affect recognition.
- Several functions may share one camera, so one camera problem can limit more than one function.
- If the glass in front of a camera is damaged or replaced, have the system checked according to the manufacturer's instructions, including calibration if required. Do not wait for an alert before addressing visible dirt or damage.
Even a clean camera has limits.
3. Speed and following distance
Cruise control aims to hold a set speed.
- Adaptive cruise control (ACC) can slow for a detected vehicle ahead and maintain a selected following time. ACC on its own does not steer. At a higher speed, the same following time means more metres of space. ACC does not exceed your set speed to follow a faster vehicle. Choose a longer following time when you want more space.
- A speed limiter sets an upper limit but does not accelerate for you below it. Some versions of intelligent speed assistance only warn. ISA that adds resistance to the accelerator can be overridden. You must still observe the speed limit.
- Check whether ACC is active: a saved speed shown in standby is not active control. Check that speed before resuming.
- If you need to slow sharply, use the brakes yourself. Cancelling cruise control is not a substitute for braking when needed. Pressing the accelerator may temporarily override distance control. Check how your car works.
- ACC may detect a small motorcycle or one near the edge of your lane late. Monitor the gap yourself. After a stop or braking yourself, check whether control is active and resume only when safe. After a longer stop, a stop-and-go system may require your confirmation before moving off again.
Standby is not active control.
4. Braking and stability
Automatic emergency braking may intervene when it detects a collision risk, but it is not a normal way to stop.
- Emergency brake assist instead boosts hard braking that you start. Multi-collision braking may limit movement after a crash.
- ABS helps prevent wheel lock during hard braking. ESC may brake individual wheels to control a skid. Traction control limits wheelspin when accelerating. Adjust your speed to the available grip.
- Trailer stability assistance does not replace proper loading and a suitable speed. The system may help reduce trailer sway.
- Hill-start assist holds the brakes briefly when you pull away on a slope. Auto Hold can keep the brakes applied after stopping. Conditions vary by car. Use the parking brake as the manual instructs when parking.
- AEB may reduce impact speed without preventing a crash. Assistance for obstacles ahead does not automatically work in reverse. Check the manual to find out whether a light means the system is intervening or has a fault.
Electronics cannot restore dry-road grip.
5. Lane assistance
A lane-departure warning can tell you that you are drifting towards a line without steering the car.
- Lane-keeping assistance may correct the steering. Lane centring aims to keep the car nearer the middle more continuously. These are different functions.
- Bends, unclear or temporary markings and wind can limit assistance. You still need to hold the right course and speed.
- Basic lane-keeping assistance does not follow a navigation route onto an exit. Steer yourself and check for space before changing lanes.
- Using an indicator, or receiving no lane warning, does not prove the neighbouring lane is clear. Look and decide for yourself before every lane change. Indicating can suppress a lane-departure warning because you are crossing the line deliberately.
- Crosswind assistance may use selective braking to help hold the car’s course in a gust. Keep steering yourself and adjust your speed.
A warning does not steer for you.
6. Blind spots and parking
A blind-spot warning alerts you to traffic the system detects beside the car. Active blind-spot assistance may also correct the steering.
- No alert does not prove the space is clear. Look yourself before changing lanes or opening a door.
- During parking, cameras and sensors show only what they can detect. Guidance lines help estimate the path but do not prove that it is clear, especially for a trailer. Moving guidance lines follow the car’s steering angle. A trailer takes a different path, so check its clearance too.
- Rear cross-traffic warning alerts you to traffic approaching from the side behind the car. Parking sensors warn of nearby obstacles. They have a different purpose.
- A parking assistant may miss an obstacle or lack room to complete the manoeuvre. Check the whole area and take control when needed. If you cancel automatic parking, take control to continue safely or keep the car safely stationary.
- An exit warning does not always lock the door. Faster parking beeps may mean an obstacle is getting closer. High obstacles or traffic hidden behind parked vehicles may be outside the detection area.
- Some trailer assistants use a camera view of the drawbar to calculate the angle between car and trailer. This does not check whether the whole path is clear.
Look yourself before changing lanes, opening a door or parking.
7. Driver attention
Some cars use a camera to assess where you are looking. Others monitor changes in steering behaviour.
- A tiredness or distraction warning can alert you to a problem, but systems do not assess attention in the same way.
- Steering assistance may even hide irregular steering from a system that uses it as a clue.
- If you feel tired, stop in a safe place and take a break, even without an alert. Keep watching traffic and sit ready to steer or brake at once.
- A function that may stop the car if the driver becomes unresponsive is for an exceptional situation, not a substitute for an alert driver.
Do not wait for a tiredness alert.
8. You remain responsible
Driver-assistance systems help you, but they do not take responsibility for driving.
- Consider the road, weather, traffic and your own condition before using or continuing to use assistance. The car may miss something, misread it or fail to complete a manoeuvre.
- Emergency braking is no reason to follow another vehicle more closely, and you should never test it by risking a collision.
- A saved parking route does not prove the path is clear today either.
- Respond to alerts, observe the situation directly and intervene in time. If a system reports a fault, follow your car's instructions.
Assistance does not remove your responsibility.
What to remember before the exam
Keep these points in mind when using assistance.
- Check the systems, sensors and your seating position before setting off.
- Know which function only warns and which may intervene.
- Observe the road and traffic yourself.
- Take control as soon as the situation requires it.
Official sources
This summary draws on CBR learning material and RDW and manufacturer guidance. Functions and operating conditions vary by car. Read your car’s manual.
Up to date
Try this in the free trial exam
You have read the rules. Now see if you recognise them in questions like the ones on the exam. The trial exam is free and needs no account.
Start the free trial examChoose a topic to review
Return to the lessons and revisit a topic you find difficult.
Back to the overview