The Genesis GV80 that Tiger Woods was driving at the time of his nasty California rollover crash is packed with a host of safety features that may have helped save the links legend’s life.
Woods, 45, suffered severe leg injuries in the Tuesday morning crash in Los Angeles County that left the luxury SUV — on loan from the luxury brand after Woods hosted the Genesis Invitational golf tournament over the weekend — a mangled wreck.
But, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said during a Tuesday evening press briefing, the outcome could have been far worse.
“The cabin of the vehicle was more or less intact, the front end was totally destroyed, the bumpers, everything was destroyed, airbags deployed all of that,” said Villanueva. “However, thankfully the interior was more or less intact, which kind of gave him the cushion to survive what otherwise would’ve been a fatal crash.”
The GV80, a new model and Genesis’ first SUV, has a base retail price of $48,900 and comes equipped with a slew of safety features, including a 10-airbag system.
“It uniquely features a centre airbag ready to activate between the two front seats, to help prevent collisions between passengers and subsequent impact injuries,” Genesis notes on its site. “For optimum impact reduction, there’s also a side curtain airbag that extends all the way back to the third row.”
Woods was traveling alone at the time of the single-car accident.
The GV80 also has a blind-spot monitor with “collision-avoidance assist” technology, and a similar system in the rear for safety while reversing, according to Genesis.
The ride additionally features a “driver attention warning” system that alerts motorists when a camera facing them detects that their focus may be drifting from the road.
A glowing review of the model in Car and Driver highlighted the GV80’s “semi-autonomous driving mode” that adapts over time to the owner’s typical driving style.
“It can learn how the owner drives and mimic that person’s driving style while in use,” said the review, which does note that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety are yet to release crash-test results for the relatively new model.
It was not immediately clear whether Woods had engaged the semi-autonomous driving system.
Authorities are yet to officially identify a cause in the crash, though Villanueva noted Tuesday that Woods was traveling “at a high rate of speed” when he lost control in a stretch known for accidents.
Video of Woods driving shortly before the crash, however, showed him traveling at a relaxed pace.
