A car stopped around a bend. A queue of vehicles a few hundred metres ahead. Or an ambulance you can hear but can't work out where it's coming from. These are just three of the countless hazards that can arise in everyday driving. We've always called them unexpected events, and that's what they remain — for most people, at least. Not for everyone, though. In the Volkswagen Golf 8, thanks to the Traffic Hazard function (standard on every model, the first in Europe to feature it), the on-board system automatically and promptly alerts the driver — via audible and visual signals — to the possible presence of hazards, before the driver can even perceive the danger with their own eyes. But how does it work? The foundation is Car2X technology. Here's everything you need to know.

Car2X, a new standard for connected vehicles

First of all, one point needs to be made clear: Traffic Hazard works within a radius of 800 metres. This is the "range" of the system (Wi-Fi p) that in turn forms the basis of what is known as Car2X technology (Car-to-Everything, meaning the vehicle is able to communicate with other vehicles and with infrastructure).

It is an ideal standard for local communication between vehicles and, crucially, it does not rely on the mobile phone network. This means that even where there is no phone signal — which often coincides with the most isolated roads, where the likelihood of unexpected events is higher — safety is maximised. Two further important points: the exchange of information takes place in a few thousandths of a second, and the data generated is not stored, thereby guaranteeing privacy.

Testing has already begun in Wolfsburg, Germany

From a more strictly functional standpoint, the system activates above 80 km/h (at speeds where emergency braking systems such as City Emergency Braking are instead deactivated) and has been designed for extra-urban roads and dual-carriageway roads. Beyond this, Volkswagen is already working on further developments of the system, as Volkswagen safety expert Thomas Biehle explains: "In the next development phase, Car2X will increase safety in cities for all road users. We are working on two of the largest intersections in Wolfsburg — the city that is home to the Volkswagen Group's headquarters — where permanent sensors have been installed capable of recording the position of pedestrians and cyclists with centimetre and millisecond precision, so as to be able to warn drivers in critical situations."

ADAC on Car2X: a milestone in safety, like ABS and the airbag

That Traffic Hazard makes a fundamental contribution to safety is also confirmed by two highly prestigious organisations: the ADAC (Allgemeine Deutsche Automobil-Club, the German Automobile Club) and EuroNCAP (the independent organisation that certifies the safety of new cars). The former recreated a classic scenario: a broken-down car on the roadside, around a bend. Thanks to Car2X technology, the new Golf warned the driver of the potential collision 11 seconds in advance, while travelling at 100 km/h and at a distance of 300 metres from the stationary vehicle. The tests were completed successfully and in every scenario the car warned the driver in good time. This led ADAC to describe Car2X as "a milestone in safety technology", on a par — no less — with systems that have revolutionised vehicle safety, such as ABS (the anti-lock braking system) and the airbag.

As for EuroNCAP, having assessed the potential of the system, it intends to incorporate it into its evaluation protocol in the near future. In other words, carmakers that in the coming years aim for 5 Stars in crash tests (the highest accolade awarded by the certifying body) will need to equip their vehicles with this device.

Connected cars: here's how they will reduce traffic

So it's not just about safety. Thanks to Car2X, traffic could flow more smoothly. "If cars are communicating with traffic lights via Wi-Fi p, drivers can adapt their speed to glide through intersections. A project of this kind has already been launched in Wolfsburg and another will soon be getting under way in Braunschweig," explained Thomas Biehle.

Systems like Car2X can also find other applications. One concerns the development of automated driving for heavy goods transport — currently being tested in several countries — achieved by linking lorries to one another in long convoys, so that the leading vehicle can warn the others of possible hazards, thereby averting their consequences. This is another reason why Volkswagen has great faith in the potential of Car2X, which, to be effective, must be rolled out on a large scale: to that end, following the latest Golf, numerous other models in the Group will adopt this technology.