There Auto Be A Law

This week we are joined by Missy Cummings, Director of George Mason University's Autonomy and Robotics Center. Missy walks us through the safety concerns with self driving cars based on your research, talks about the definition of 'safe enough', how laughable remote operations are and lack of functional safety testing. This episode underscores the urgent need for both state and federal regulations...

NHTSA is wrapping up the new year with new rules for whistleblowers, event data recorders and seatbelt warnings. Waymo is the highlight for the 'Gaslight of the Week' due to misleading safety certifications for its autonomous vehicle program. Donald Trump is likely to scrap a rule on crash reporting for autonomous vehicles. Bench seats might be coming back. And recent automotive recalls and potent...

GM finally listened to us and/or did some basic math and realized that GM Cruise was a dumpster fire that needed to be extinguished. Imagine what they could have done with the $10 Billion they squandered. A recent AAA survey covers risky driver behaviors and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's findings that vehicle height increases pedestrian injury severity. Consumer Reports' reliability...

This episode delves into the effectiveness of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) in keeping drivers engaged, the risks posed by partial automation, and the need for regulatory oversight. We highlight issues with Tesla's approach to autonomous driving, including its reliance on remote operators. Recalls for vehicles from Pagani, GM, Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche are discussed, emphasiz...

Happy Thanksgiving listeners! This week we share our top ten things we are thankful for in car safety. Highlights include the Tesla Cybertruck and full self-driving technology, NHTSA's recent improvements and penalties, and shout-outs to people and organizations contributing to automotive safety such as the anonymous engineers that make cars safer. Links: https://philkoopman.substack.com/p/debunki...

Topics: Kudos to NHTSA for NCAP improvements; Frowns to Ford for recalls; New DOT secretary; Will Washington rubber stamp all of Elon's dreams? Tesla drivers are dangerous; Tesla's will trap you in a fire; Renewable natural gas explained; Recall roundup; Links: https://apnews.com/article/automobile-safety-nhtsa-crash-pedestrian-2fc22f755c51bfe9bb668f90e8ee8956 https://www.freep.com/story/money/car...

Topics: Rivian and Volkswagen join forces; NHTSA kinda sorta asks Tesla to clear up it's communications around cars that drive themselves; What will Elon's department of efficiency mean for auto safety? Fred deep dives into duty of care with a focus on hazard mitigation; Recalls and rusting cybertrucks; and more Links: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/12/business/volkswagen-rivian-electric-vehicles...

Deep breaths... Hummer EV, what the election means for NHTSA, regulations and everything related to safety. Are LED headlights too brights? Zoox and Tesla have a spat. It's a new world. This weeks links: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2024/11/driving-the-biggest-least-efficient-electric-car-the-hummer-ev-suv/ https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/2/24285399/amazon-zoox-robotaxi-nhtsa-fmvss-comply https:/...

This week: we start by examining the hype around robo-taxis and their impact on public transportation improvements in automatic emergency braking technology, citing a recent study by AAA, yet highlighting its limitations at higher speeds. Automotive data privacy and consumers' right to control data collected by vehicles, emphasizing the need for regulation. the challenge of detecting and regulatin...

Topics this week: the decline in all-rider helmet laws the historical impact of the 1964 'chicken tax' on the dominance of SUVs, the ongoing issues with Tesla's 'Full Self-Driving' and Summon features. the challenges faced by first responders with electric vehicles the intricacies of autonomous vehicle perception technology recalls Links: https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/lax-helmet-laws-have-kille...

This week we debunk Elon Musk’s grandiose claims about Tesla's Robo Taxi, highlighting regulatory and safety hurdles, and the inflated value of Tesla’s stock driven by speculative products. Regulators can't seem to keep up with the new safety needs of autonomous vehicles and Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2X) but Gatik AI is making an effort by adopting UL4600. The EU states the obvious - the CyberTr...

Big thank you to Janette Fennell from Kids and Cars Safety for sending us some cool swag. This weeks topics include: Tesla's controversial full self-driving claims; Regulatory issues surrounding autonomous vehicles; Self-certification in vehicle crash testing; A Fisker recall update; When/why do vehicles get crash tested; The New York legal loopholes in drug-impaired driving; Recalls and more... L...

Hello listener. Here are some highlights from this weeks episode: NHTSA is making GM Cruise submit a report of it's software updates every 90 days. Anthony suggests NHTSA ask for the commit logs and other developer documentation so they don't get gaslit. Tesla's FSD requires a human to do the full self driving part. Consumer Reports looks at the CyberTruck and they think visibility sucks. Kia gets...

Highlights: The Biden administration's policy on limiting Chinese and Russian vehicle technology to protect U.S. data, and the general challenges in tracing vehicle components' origins. The DHS warns about counterfeit airbags. Anthony calls BS on Sam Altman Michael tells CarMax they are responsible for recalls Fred points out flaws in Torc Robotics and explains GPS This weeks links: https://www.wh...

Waymo goes full PR campaign and gets some "journalists" to write that Waymo is safer than a human... without explaining that Waymo's data is like comparing apples to astronauts. Basically, Waymo is better than the worst human drivers on small subset of roads, at slow speeds in limited conditions. Maybe. IIHS releases a study showing that partial automation is, at best, partially beneficial, DC doe...

We start off this week with California's proposed Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) bill, which aims to warn drivers exceeding speed limits by 10 mph. Next is NHTSA's new safety standards for pedestrian protection and other auto safety innovations. Then, we critique unrealistic claims about autonomous vehicles and highlight a recent investigation into Jeep vehicles catching fire. This weeks links...

Finally, a congressional bill aimed at setting federal standards for hood height and visibility to protect pedestrians. Another failure of partial automation systems like Ford's Blue Cruise and Tesla's Autopilot. Anthony let's loose on the NY Times, Amazon is using bad tech to monitor it's drivers and the recalls galore. This weeks links: https://www.npr.org/2024/08/23/nx-s1-5084276/pedestrian-pro...

This week we are joined by Mike Nelson, chair and founder of QuantivRisk, a risk management and technology company. The discussion focuses on QuantivRisk's innovative approach to analyzing vehicle data and video to objectively assess automotive accidents. This episode covers the challenges of defining and litigating safety in the context of ADAS and autonomous vehicles, particularly the complexity...

A follow up on honking Waymo's Will V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything) happen?. The Automated Vehicle Safety Consortium lacks consumer and academic vetting in their recommendations for automated vehicle safety. Software stress testing Recalls from Ford and BMW This weeks links: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/waymo-director-says-the-company-s-cars-won-t-honk-at-each-other-anymore/ar-AA1p7puc ht...

Welcome to the chaos of self-driving Waymo vehicles in San Francisco, Elon Musk's questionable promises on robo taxis, and the potential dangers of autonomous vehicles on highways. We question the AV industry's adherence to ethical practices and discuss the severe consequences of failing lithium-ion batteries. Plus recalls. And get your Takata airbag replaced. This weeks links: https://arstechnica...

Hey Listeners, How do we feel about bullet points? This week we cover topics like... Update on the ARC airbag recall implicating 50 million airbags with defects, leading to potential ruptures; Tesla's reporting on Autopilot crashes and the WSJ's great investigation; Data privacy issues with car companies like GM, who sell user driving data.; The financial math behind the autonomous vehicle industr...

We're off this week. This is repeat of an episode that a lot of people missed. It's a good one. Don't miss. Or any episodes. https://www.autosafety.org/support-us/

The dangers of capacitive controls, seatback safety standards, the nonsense spewing from Elon Musk, the FCC toying with us over V2X and GM Cruise continues to gaslight General Motors. Plus we discuss the importance of robust software testing. This weeks links: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2024/07/vw-id-4-owners-report-unintended-acceleration-blame-steering-wheel-design/ https://www.nhtsa.gov/press...

Dr. Jonathan Gitlin, senior automotive writer for Ars Technica, joins us this week. Jonathan discusses his career shift, passion for cars, and his experiences test-driving numerous vehicles. This week we delve into the efficacy and ethics of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), Tesla's self-driving claims, and challenges within urban transportation infrastructures. This weeks links: https://...

This week we cover recent controversies surrounding Tesla's Full Self-Driving technology, revealing how manual interventions and YouTuber feedback fuel the myth of advanced AI automation and into the broader issues of automotive safety, discussing open-source software's pitfalls and the potential cybersecurity risks in modern vehicles. Other highlights include varied recalls from manufacturers lik...