General Motors’ OnStar service has been offering stolen vehicle location since 1996, but on Thursday OnStar launched a whole new system to keep your vehicle even safer. Dubbed Stolen Vehicle Slowdown, the new system is able slow down OnStar-equipped vehicle stolen in the United States and Canada.
The new technology will be offered on over 1 million 2009 model year GM vehicles, with already 20,000 such equipped vehicles on the road.
The system works by first locating the stolen vehicle through GPS after it has been reported stolen. OnStar then contacts the local authorities and alerts them to the vehicle’s location. Once police are in place, the police place a call to the OnSatr communication center, requesting a vehicle shut down. An OnStar representative then activates Stolen Vehicle Slowdown, which turns on the vehicle’s hazard lights and slowly cuts power. Although the throttle pedal will be useless to the car thief, power-steering and braking functions will remain intact as to not cause an accident.
For those wary about handing over such controls to Big Brother, customers can chose to have the Stolen Vehicle Slowdown disabled at any time with a simple phone call – no need to make a trip to a GM dealer. Stolen Vehicle Slowdown comes bundled with OnStar’s one free year of service, but then requires a monthly service fee after that.
10/09, 5:10 PM
posted by:
RaineMan
So will this be backwards compatible with older GM models? That would be pretty sweet.
10/09, 5:31 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
Well that takes all the fun out of ‘drive it like you stole it’.
10/09, 6:35 PM
posted by:
JerkStoreAssistantManager
That is great!
If you have ever had your car stolen, then you would probably would agree that you would also like to see an OnStar feature called “Punch-Culprit-In-Face-With-Air-Bag” after the slowdown has taken place. And if they could incorporate a video camera into the “Punch-Culprit-In-Face-With-Air-Bag” feature, I would pay double!
10/09, 7:12 PM
posted by:
VWgrouP
See, this OnStar is probably the best thing that has ever happend to GM. Its just brilliant..And its probably why so many people buy their cars.
10/09, 7:28 PM
posted by:
tzu13
Lol. I wonder how long it will take until a disgruntled spouse to abuses this system?
10/09, 7:49 PM
posted by:
Jordan
step 1: have onstar lock the car doors from the outside.
step 2: engage stolen vehicles slowdown.
step 3: at stop, activate airbags.
step 4: ???
step 5: PROFIT!!!
10/09, 8:00 PM
posted by:
Lariat Luxury Locomotive Liner No.3
The seasoned theft already knows how to disable OnStar. And the bigger reality is what GM car would a theft want to steal these days?
10/09, 8:56 PM
posted by:
howsmydriving
I’d rather have my car stolen and stripped than give GM the ability to eavesdrop on my conversations with OnStar.
10/09, 9:27 PM
posted by:
acura_el2000
I wonder if Bush’s Caddy has this…..could be used as an upperhand
10/10, 5:07 AM
posted by:
GM CEO
Hey guise! I have an idea. Its like a cellphone for the car! Its hands free and it will have a monthly fee! Perfect for the daft, lazy, and forgettful!
10/10, 3:50 PM
posted by:
beemerdude
I worked for Clifford Electronics (automotive alarm company) in Chatsworth, Calif. in the early 90’s. They had this same feature way back then. This isn’t anything new!
10/10, 7:05 PM
posted by:
dmlgc
“JerkStoreAssistantManager
And if they could incorporate a video camera into the “Punch-Culprit-In-Face-With-Air-Bag” feature, I would pay double!”
+1 LOL
10/10, 10:12 PM
posted by:
Get Real
News to me …..I didn’t know people WANT to steal GM product.
The humilation in prison would make me not do it.
10/12, 6:00 PM
posted by:
LuckyLou
Hahaha!! Some great responses here!
I’m a bit skeptical about On Star. I have a sneaking suspicion that On Star is actually a two-way system whereby dealers can command vehicle failures right from the service dept. as soon as the warranty is up.