Issues
NTSB: Autopilot flaw, driver inattention caused Tesla crash
The Center for Auto Safety, another advocacy group, also called for a recall. “Put simply, a vehicle that enables a driver to not pay attention, or fall asleep, while accelerating into a parked fire truck is defective and dangerous,” the group said in a statement. “Any company that encourages such behavior should be held responsible,…
Star Safety Ratings, Long Helpful to Car Buyers, Now Languish in the Breakdown Lane
“There is no comparative value in the system anymore. It’s the equivalent of handing out candy at Halloween: Everybody gets some,” said Jason Levine, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety based in Washington, D.C. Grade inflation in school makes it difficult to distinguish who is actually achieving in the classroom. The federal…
Automatic emergency braking boosts safety but some complaints of false activations
“When they work, they are among the most revolutionary sets of safety technology that we’ve had in a long time,” said Jason Levine, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety… “We believe it’s a real safety concern when you’ve got brakes engaging when they shouldn’t be,” said Levine. “This should be a recall.”…
Write new rules for AV safety, NHTSA told
In comments submitted to NHTSA last week, the center questioned the agency’s choice to “prioritize a potential roll back of important protections afforded by the current Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.” The center says rollbacks would “accommodate the introduction of vehicle technology that is in its infancy and quite likely decades away from widespread practical…
NTSB cites driver error, Tesla Autopilot design in crash report
The Center for Auto Safety called on NHTSA to order Tesla to recall vehicles equipped with AutoPilot. “NTSB has done its job by thoroughly investigating this technology and this crash. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration must also now do its job and recall these vehicles,” the watchdog group said in a statement. “Today, NTSB…
Self-driving carmakers urge regulators to whiff the steering wheel out the window
Safety advocates are urging the NHTSA to take its time in deliberating these changes. For example, the Center for Auto Safety “strongly question[s]” the NHTSA’s decision to prioritize these rule changes considering self-driving cars are still in their “infancy and quite likely decades away from widespread practical utility.” The federal government should rewrite the safety…
As Automatic Braking Becomes More Common in Cars, So Do Driver Complaints
Automatic emergency-braking systems that are promoted as a safety feature in vehicles don’t always work as intended and at times activate when there is no risk of a crash, drivers say. Drivers have reported several hundred incidents to U.S. regulators in recent years of these brakes malfunctioning or not deploying properly, highlighting the challenges car…
What do you think you know about self-driving cars? What the experts say may surprise you
Center for Auto Safety Executive Director Jason Levine, professing technology and enforcement don’t always work at the same pace. “People say self driving vehicles are Just computers on wheels. We don’t regulate computers very well,” Levine said. Cars that completely drive themselves in showrooms a year from now? It’s a common misconception, consumer safety advocates…
Driverless Cars Could Make You a Worse Driver
It is hailed as the future of motoring, but cars controlling themselves may be having an adverse effect on people behind the wheel. New research has found that using a driverless car may make you a worse driver. A study was conducted earlier this year at the University of Nottingham into ‘conditional automation’ cars capable…
Tesla driver seen apparently asleep at the wheel
Asleep at the wheel? A Tesla driver appears to be dozing off on the highway while moving up to 70 MPH. @ReeveWill has the story. https://t.co/W1vUNMab63 pic.twitter.com/TWPiENYSpx — Good Morning America (@GMA) August 26, 2019 To learn more about our autonomous safety vehicle project, click here.