Get Your Eyesight At Half Price. In A Subaru
Electronic doo-dads such as collision-avoidance systems used to be the realm of pricier models. Fuji Heavy, parent of Subaru, will change that. They are dead set to nannify all Subarus with their newly developed collision avoidance system, says The Nikkei [sub].
The reason? Officially, it’s “growing consumer interest in automobile safety.” The truth is, Fuji figured how to make the gizmo much cheaper.
Fuji’s “EyeSight” uses standard stereoscopic cameras. This cuts the price of the gizmo down to 100,000 yen ($1080.) That’s about half of what current systems cost. Still, a grand is a grand, and a Subaru is a Subaru. Let’s hope the el-cheapo EyeSight will remain feature optional.
EyeSight will first be given to the new Legacy, due out this month in Japan. Subaru reckons a take rate of 30 percent. Subsequently, the Impreza, Forester and other models will get their own EyeSight.
Most likely, you will also find the gizmo in minicars by Daihatsu, “with a rollout for vehicles marketed overseas to be considered next year,” as The Nikkei speculates.
The EyeSight system uses two cameras close to the rearview mirror. It looks for obstacles in front of the car. If it finds one, the system first warns the driver. If the driver ignores the warning, that system slams the brakes. That should distract them from texting or applying lipstick.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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I have to confess... So much lately has me foaming at the mouth.. in regards to pretty much everything. I hate the b.s Gm ads about Consumer Digest. I hate the ads about the Toyota woman who is now driving a Malibu because it is a solid car and ya dont have to settle. But a current one.. is some [BLEEP] in a Volvo..who drops the sunglasses.. AND GOES DOWN TO GET THEM... but thankfully her [BLEEP]ing car has the ability to [BLEEP]ing cover [BLEEP] ass. If ya would have LEFT the [BLEEP] glasses on the [BLEEP] floor in the first place.. ya wouldn't have to take ya [BLEEP] eyes OFF the [BLEEP] road IN THE [BLEEP] [BLEEP] FIRST PLACE! [BLEEP] car safety systems! BE AWARE!
ABS will tend to look after activation of this system on slippery roads. The real "threat" of this system is that it prepares the way for cars to drive themselves. Lane sensing, gps and distance-sensing systems, not to mention parking systems and remote starting, can be knitted together so the driver becomes a passenger. Although this will horrify those who feel people were put on earth to operate the controls of transportation appliances and toys, it will go a long way to increasing road capacity, decreasing fuel consumption and eliminating accidents. Besides freeing up time to engage in driver distractions. I would definitely use a system like this. With pickups and vans and suv's always blocking the visibility ahead, driving a sedan in heavy traffic has become somewhat more stressful than it used to be
It will be like riding in a train or bus. "fun" will be so dumbed down - the marketing geniuses will have to change our sense and expectations of fun. Without fun in life, I wonder if thr "eyesight" will fail intentionally when it realizes how boring your life is.
The subaru "eyesight" feature doesn't seem so useful to me, since it (I assume) will only work under ideal visibility conditions suitable for the cameras - during broad daylight. That's when the system is least needed by the driver. A better system would be an infrared camera that displays obstacles on a heads-up display. This would help drivers avoid hitting pedestrians, animals, and vehicles under adverse conditions like darkness, heavy rain, or fog.