March 28, 2012 12:42 pm EDT

Cadillac focuses on safety with vibrating drivers' seats, other accident avoidance tech (video)

To say General Motors' Cadillac division is taking safety seriously on its upcoming 2013 vehicles would be an understatement. The automaker recently announced its high-tech accident avoidance packages dubbed Driver Awareness and Assist, the earlier of which is set to debut this Spring on its new XTS model, moving along to the ATS by the summer. Driver Assist (set to release in the fall) packs goodies like Automatic Collision Preparation and auto-braking, while the Awareness version aims to help keep you in your lane and safe from blind spots, among other things. Despite the differing monikers, both sport many of the same systems such as Adaptive Forward Lighting that can shift 15 degrees based on your turn, radar-based adaptive cruise control and Rear Cross Traffic Alert so you don't get sideswiped while backing up. Most notable among both is the company's Safety Alert seat -- AT&T Labs may be testing a force-feedback steering wheel, but GM's gone and planted haptic feedback into the drivers' bottom seat cushion. Essentially, using the radar, cameras and sensors around the car, the seat can rumble on its left, right or all around, in order to "nudge" you in situations such as getting to close to another car or veering out of your lane. You can also opt for audio cues if you're not fond of vibrations, or use both together. Of course, there's a whole lot more too it, so if you're curious to see it all in action you'll find a duo of videos and more information in the press releases planted after the break.

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Cadillac focuses on safety with vibrating drivers' seats, other accident avoidance tech (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Mar 2012 08:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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