Your Future No Longer Includes Rear-Ending That Other Car

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

As we reported yesterday, a group of top automakers has agreed to offer automatic emergency braking (AEB) on almost all of their models by 2022.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) confirmed the voluntary agreement today, meaning virtually all light-duty cars and trucks sold in North America will adopt the safety feature by Sept. 1, 2022.

The group is made up of Audi, BMW, FCA US LLC, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar Land Rover, Kia, Maserati, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan, Porsche, Subaru, Tesla Motors Inc., Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo Car USA.

“By proactively making emergency braking systems standard equipment on their vehicles, these 20 automakers will help prevent thousands of crashes and save lives,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a statement.

Imposing mandatory AEB through regulations would have taken an extra three years, the NHTSA estimates, during which time a total of 28,000 preventable crashes (resulting in 12,000 injuries) would occur. The NHTSA and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) worked closely with the automakers to reach the agreement.

The vehicles that must comply by 2022 are cars and trucks with a gross vehicle weight of 8,500 pounds or less. Trucks with a GVW of 8,501 to 10,000 pounds will have to comply by Sept. 1, 2025.

Owning a vehicle with AEB might just save you money above and beyond the collisions the system will help you avoid.

“Deploying AEB on a wide scale will allow us to further evaluate the technology’s effectiveness and its impact on insurance losses, so that more insurers can explore offering discounts or lower premiums to consumers who choose AEB-equipped vehicles,” stated IIHS Board Chairman (and CEO of American Family Insurance) Jack Salzwedel.

Taking full advantage of the announcement, Volvo released a statement today reminding everyone that automatic braking has been standard on its full line of vehicles since 2014. Volvo claims the technology has reduced rear-end collisions by 41 percent and injures to occupants by 47 percent.

[Image: Mark Turnauckas/ Flickr]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Ryoku75 Ryoku75 on Mar 18, 2016

    This will more than likely go the Takata route, everyone will source from the cheapest third world source, drivers will tailgate and crash, and we'll have a massive recall. Why not just drive better?

    • TMA1 TMA1 on Mar 18, 2016

      Don't worry, I'm sure the savings will passed on to you. That's why OEMs are still charging $1,000+ for built in navigation units with less functionality than a $100 Garmin.

  • Skeeter44 Skeeter44 on Mar 22, 2016

    I am just waiting for the unintended consequences. While an undoubtedly good idea, now well does is it going to work in practice ?? I know my 2015 Accord is constantly warning me to brake when I am passing cars or changing lanes or even closing on someone in a rapid manner. What is going to happen when I do this with one of these system active? What happens when every 3rd or 4th car has these systems and they all suddenly (and unpredictably) brake ? I can smell the lawyer commercials already.

  • EBFlex Garbage but for less!
  • FreedMike I actually had a deal in place for a PHEV - a Mazda CX-90 - but it turned out to be too big to fit comfortably in my garage, thus making too difficult to charge, so I passed. But from that, I learned the Truth About PHEVs - they're a VERY niche product, and probably always be, because their use case is rather nebulous. Yes, you can run on EV power for 25-30 miles, plug it in at home on a slow charger, and the next day, you're ready to go again. Great in theory, but in practice, a) you still need a home charger, b) you paid a LOT more for the car than you would have for a standard hybrid, and c) you discover the nasty secret of PHEVs, which is that when they're on battery power, they're absolute pigs to drive. Meanwhile, to maintain its' piglike battery-only performance, it still needs to be charged, so you're running into all the (overstated) challenges that BEV owners have, with none of the performance that BEV owners like. To quote King George in "Hamilton": " Awesome. Wow." In the Mazda's case, the PHEV tech was used as a performance enhancer - which worked VERY nicely - but it's the only performance-oriented PHEV out there that doesn't have a Mercedes-level pricetag. So who's the ideal owner here? Far as I can tell, it's someone who doesn't mind doing his 25 mile daily commute in a car that's slow as f*ck, but also wants to take the car on long road trips that would be inconvenient in a BEV. Meanwhile, the MPG Uber Alles buyers are VERY cost conscious - thus the MPG Uber Alles thing - and won't be enthusiastic about spending thousands more to get similar mileage to a standard hybrid. That's why the Volt failed. The tech is great for a narrow slice of buyers, but I think the real star of the PHEV revival show is the same tax credits that many BEVs get.
  • RHD The speed limit was raised from 62.1 MPH to 68.3 MPH. It's a slight difference which will, more than anything, lower the fines for the guy caught going 140 KPH.
  • Msquare The argument for unlimited autobahns has historically been that lane discipline is a life-or-death thing instead of a suggestion. That and marketing cars designed for autobahn speeds gives German automakers an advantage even in places where you can't hope to reach such speeds. Not just because of enforcement, but because of road conditions. An old Honda commercial voiced by Burgess Meredith had an Accord going 110 mph. Burgess said, "At 110 miles per hour, we have found the Accord to be quiet and comfortable. At half that speed, you may find it to be twice as quiet and comfortable." That has sold Mercedes, BMW's and even Volkswagens for decades. The Green Party has been pushing for decades for a 100 km/h blanket limit for environmental reasons, with zero success.
  • Varezhka The upcoming mild-hybrid version (aka 500 Ibrida) can't come soon enough. Since the new 500e is based on the old Alfa Mito and Opel Adam platform (now renamed STLA City) you'd have thought they've developed the gas version together.
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