(AOL Autos) -- Protecting drivers and passengers from injury has been a high priority for car makers for the last 40 years or more.



A truck driver tests an anti-collison system. The red light goes on if the car in front of him is too close.



Not just because it's the right thing to do, but also because having a reputation for building safe vehicles helps automakers sell more cars.



But in recent years, high-tech advancements have come along at such a fast and furious rate that auto-safety systems have entered a whole new universe.



For most of the history of auto manufacturing, car makers' efforts in the area of safety have been devoted to developing "passive" safety features -- seat belts, air bags, building a stronger frame for the cabin, side-impact door beams, etc. All those things help you stay safe once you are involved in an accident.



But just as advanced technology has changed almost every other industry, so too has it changed the automotive industry, leading to the design of more "active" safety features. AOL Autos: Safest cars



It started with now-common features like anti-lock brakes (ABS) and electronic stability control systems (ESC). But in recent years, engineers have taken safety technology to a new level.



And these days, they spend more time and money researching and developing "crash avoidance" features and technologies. These computerized systems, instead of protecting you if a crash occurs, help you avoid accidents in the first place.



Some of these systems are already in vehicles on the road today, while others are coming down the pipeline in the next few years.



Mercedes uses radar, rear-view monitor



Given that it's a higher-priced luxury brand, it figures that Mercedes-Benz is one of the leaders when it comes to these kinds of high-tech crash-avoidance systems. Finely-tuned anti-lock brake and electronic-stability-control systems are standard equipment in all Mercedes cars. AOL Autos: Best and worst hybrids



"And presently, a number of our vehicles offer Distronic Plus, a crash-avoidance system that employs dual-band radar that measures the distance between you and the vehicle ahead of you," said Patrik Borenius, Mercedes' manager of advanced product planning.



"If that distance closes too rapidly, indicating that a crash might be imminent, it emits first an audible signal, then a visual warning, and the system can actually start to apply the brakes to a certain threshold.



"Or, if you start to apply the brakes yourself, but not quickly enough to help you avoid impact, our Brake Assist system applies even more braking power." AOL Autos: Most popular fuel-efficient cars



"We also have a Blind Spot Monitor that uses radar to examine the area just to the rear and to the left of your vehicle," added Bart Herring, product manager for Mercedes' S-Class and CL-Class. "So when another vehicle, or any object, enters into that blind spot, a red indicator light in your side view mirror lights up. And if you start to change lanes while that other car is in your blind spot that also triggers an audio alert to warn you."



Plus, Mercedes' Rear View Monitor "views" anything that is directly behind the vehicle as it is backing up, and then projects that image onto the navigation-system screen. This feature helps avoid accidents in situations where the vehicle is going in reverse and the driver's view of oncoming traffic is impaired -- like in parking structures, or when backing out of a driveway on a heavily-trafficked street. AOL Autos: Most popular crossover vehicles



Mercedes also offers a Night View system in the S-Class and CL-Class, which, at night, "gives you a very sharp, daytime-quality picture of everything that is going on in front of you," Herring said. "And it's projected onto a separate display screen that's in the middle of the instrument
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question: what helps car sales, answer: building safe vehicles | question: What does Mercedes have that views directly behind the vehicle as it backs up?, answer: passengers | question: A reputation for building what type of vehicles helps automakers sell more cars?, answer: safe | question: what system is being pushed forward, answer: auto-safety | question: What kind of advancements push auto-safety systems forward?, answer: high-tech | question: What does Mercedes' Rear View Monitor do?, answer: "views" anything that is directly behind the vehicle as it is backing up, and then projects that image onto the navigation-system screen.