2013

Distracted driving may prove to be the defining topic of this decade’s highway safety efforts, but a new study reveals that some drivers may finally be getting the message that distraction has no place at the wheel. The AutoTECHCAST poll from Harris carried out in April and May of this year sought to acquire the… read more

Law enforcement officials have begun to use license plate reader systems as a means to identify those automobiles that may have been involved in a crime.  But the implications of this technology have begun to worry privacy advocates. Once a license plate has been recorded, information about it goes into a database that acts as… read more

Even as officials try to get citizens across the country to adopt the electric car, one problem has remained:  driving long distances on a charge.  Now, Tesla hopes to do something about this issue with the development of a system that allows drivers to switch out their depleted battery with a completely charged one.  Hawthorne,… read more

It’s important to draw attention to the threat posed by distracted driving.  When your mind is taken away from the road by a text message or a phone call, you’re unable to react to changes in driving conditions as fast as you otherwise would be able to, and the door is thus left open to… read more

A new article investigates the possible safety dangers associated with keyless ignition systems. The case of a Missouri woman whose car went out of control possibly due to the malfunction of the keyless ignition is also observed and analyzed. The increased scrutiny has caused some safety officials to question whether keyless ignition systems are themselves… read more

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has ruled that vehicle event data recorders popularly known as black boxes will have to display standardized information. Experts believe that the ruling could mean we’re not far away from a future ruling mandating such devices in new vehicles. The ruling takes effect at the beginning of October. Privacy… read more

Keeping distracted drivers safe is the goal of the new Vehicle to Vehicle technology.  The author of a report about the testing of such technology in Ann Arbor got to take a ride in a luxury car, although other types of cars can be outfitted as well. Equipped with V2V, the car alerts the driver… read more

Vehicle systems that detect pedestrians are becoming increasingly common.  Euro NCAP is going to start taking into account a car’s ability to avoid pedestrian injuries when calculating their ratings, giving automakers an added incentive to install such detection technology.  Continental’s tech utilizes a camera to prevent collisions, Volvo uses cameras and infrared sensors, and General… read more

New vehicle safety technology is being tested in Frankfurt, Germany. The device aims to allow cars to relay information between  each other in order to promote road safety and ease congestion along busy thoroughfares. The project will involve 120 cars equipped with technology called “car-to-x”. Other commodities in the new technology include brake lights optimized… read more

The Mazda CX-5 has been awarded the top safety pick award from NCAP for the technologies it has placed inside. The European Car Safety Council was so impressed with Mazda’s air braking technology that they want it to become a standard in cars across Europe by 2014. The car utilizes technology to determine if an obstruction… read more

Safe Pick is a tool a consumer can use to pick a safer used car based on their budget and taste in automobile. Two cars on the safety rankings list are the Volvo S40 of the 1997 through 2004 model years and the Honda Accord of the 2003 through 2007 model years. The New Zealand… read more

The Chief Executive of the Australian New Car Assessment Program has given a big endorsement to Automated Emergency Braking systems, going so far as to call such technology vehicle safety’s next big thing.  He thinks that yearly fatalities would decrease by a quarter, leading to 250 less fatalities in the country per year with mandatory… read more