Which active-safety suite is better? Honda SENSING vs. Toyota Safety Sense

Advanced safety systems (also known as active-safety suites) are slowly becoming the norm, with more and more manufacturers including them in their cars.

For instance, Honda Cars Philippines made headlines by offering its Honda SENSING suite as standard in all variants of the updated 2024 Honda City. This is a first for the popular subcompact sedan segment.

These features make vehicles more convenient to use and safer, especially on long trips.

That being said, we will compare two popular active-safety systems, the Toyota Safety Sense (TSS) and Honda SENSING, to see which one is better and what unique features they offer on paper.

For this comparison, we will use two longtime rivals, the Honda Civic and the Toyota Corolla Altis, to determine which brand has the superior advanced driver assistance system (ADAS). 

What they have in common

To keep things fair, we will first list what the two sedans have in common about their active-safety systems.

In this manner, we can find out what unique features they bring to the table. 

As standard, both vehicles have the following for their ADAS:

• Adaptive Cruise Control/Dynamic Radar Cruise Control
• Lane Keeping Assist/Lane Tracing Assist
• Lane Departure Warning/Lane Departure Alert
• Autonomous Emergency Braking
• Auto highbeam

While these safety features are called by different names, they function similarly and, as such, have been grouped under an umbrella term.

For instance, Autonomous Emergency Braking refers to the pre-collision and collision-mitigation systems of the Corolla Altis and Civic. 

What does Honda SENSING offer?

The Honda SENSING safety suite can be found in the Honda City, Honda BR-V, Honda HR-V, Honda CR-V and Honda Civic.

However, aside from the safety features mentioned above, it also comes with the following:

• Low-Speed Follow
• Lead Car Departure Warning
• Road Departure Mitigation
• Forward Collision Warning

As you can see, Honda SENSING has a more comprehensive set of features that lets you use it in the city, especially with the low-speed follow functionality.

What does Toyota Safety Sense offer?

The Toyota Safety Sense suite of features is available in multiple models under the Japanese automaker.

The number of safety features varies depending on the model, but its core features remain the same. 

The TSS is available in the following vehicles under the Japanese brand:

• Toyota Corolla Altis
• Toyota Corolla Cross
• Toyota Camry
• Toyota RAV4
• Toyota Veloz
• Toyota Fortuner 
• Toyota Land Cruiser
• Toyota Zenix
• Toyota Hiace Super Grandia
• Toyota GR86
• Toyota Hilux
• Toyota GR Yaris

As you can see, most of Toyota’s lineup has access to TSS, which is excellent if you are after safety. However, you must remember that not all models have the complete suite available.

Which is better?

The Honda SENSING suite is more comprehensive in what it offers, as it has more features available that can be used daily. 

What Toyota did, however, was to get the basics done right with adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking and lane keep assist. It then spread these features to the majority of its major models, making its local lineup safer than ever.

However, for this comparison, we will have to give the win to Honda for its more comprehensive set of safety features. Plus, the added bonus of low-speed follow ensures that you can use cruise control in slow-moving traffic or in the city. 

Which set of advanced driver assistance systems is better?

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