Comments on: Stability control could prevent 10,000 deaths a year

By: D-Rock

D-Rock — Mon, 19 Jun 2006 07:36:12 +0000

I’d like to see this standard, aslong as you can disable it. I love DSC/ECS on my BMW’s in the snow.

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 16:52:28 +0000

so, the geriatric who didn’t know his own name behind the wheel is a result of technology? Nope, that is a WHOLE ‘nother issue dealing with developing more stringent requirements… such as mandatory yearly renewalls for drivers over 75yrs of age.

“because saying that people should learn to drive might not save your life”
saying it does nothing. actually being a better driver will.

There are morons, idiots and assholes trying to run people off the road every day. That is part of society. But a controlled environment test of a system that actually LESSENS the drivers ability to control the vehicle in certain situation (not allowing a driver to use the throttle to control a situation, a computer deciding how much anti’lock is enough and ignoring driver inputs above that, etc) should not be sufficient to mandate this technology on all vehicles. You call them “tools”, I call them impediments to full vehicle control.

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 16:31:58 +0000

so, Harvey Postlethwaite, you prefer worse (even sleeping) drivers on the road with more technology, more power, and heavier vehicles than an attentive driver who actually knows how to pilot a vehicle properly and correctly?

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 15:56:50 +0000

It doesn’t take an expert driver to avoid mowing someone down… it requires paying attention and not driving a 3 ton suburban like you would a ferrari. Depending on the example, it may also be my fault for stepping out in front of a 3 ton suburban. Either way, it is still personal responsibility.

I said nothing about a screwdriver, but at the same time, it should not take an Electrical Engineering degree to change a spark plug.

The question becomes, where do we draw the line? Manufacturers have even developed a self-parallel parking system! Is that going to improve the quality of drivers on the road? Are active distance/speed sensing cruise control systems going to make drivers more, or less attentive?

By: Ahk-Med

Ahk-Med — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 15:44:02 +0000

Life saving technology is so dumb. I can’t wait for the day that they take our airbags, seatbelts, and collapsable steering colums. I mean, they are heavy, expensive, and I can’t fix them with a screw driver in my garage.

Mike, are you sure your not 80 years old? You sound like my grandfather. “When I was a kid cars weren’t designed with safety features, AND WE LIKED IT!.”

News flash: very few people on the road are expert drivers like everyone here seems to think they are themselves. What about when the soccer mom behind the wheel of her 3 ton Suburban avoids mowing you down becuase the stability/traction control mechanism kicked in? Dosen’t sound like such a bad idea then, does it?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 14:32:43 +0000

Agreed #2

By: aj

aj — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 14:28:57 +0000

Agreed.