Its an odd world isn’t it really. The biggest contribution that could be made to road safety would be better training in the first place, regular retesting and re-education where appropriate, a graded licence system to keep the young out of inappropriate cars (as is done for bikes), and more enforcement of current regulations. So why does none of that seme to happen?
But what we get is the manufacturers spending more and more on safety features that I believe do indeed reduce the level of ability a driver needs and perhaps are in the end going to make people a lot more complacent about their level of concentration on driving safely in the first place.
Don’t get me wrong I can’t wait for the proper autonomous car to come along. My tedious journey on Sunday night back home the 170 miles from the NEC Resto Show would have involved a bit of a nap for starters, how lovely that would have been!
I drive an Audi, I make every effort to stick to the speed limits, and my car has indicators which I use (but appreciate I may be exceptional!) . Strangely enough for an 18 plate it has none of these other newer “safety” features, so i still have to brake myself, I still have to keep between the white lines myself, I still have to do a shoulder check to make sure I’m not blind spotted. I can cope with all that though, its what driving is about! But I do have ABS, and all the other comforts of a modern car, so still get that false sense of security they give us all.
But I am pretty sure I am a far safer driver when in an old stripped out MX-5 that has the very minimum of anything so all my concentration is on the road ahead, (and to the side and behind!) And I mean no radio to distract, no phone prep, no sat nav, no ABS, nothing. My concentration needs to be 100% and it is.
But then again as keen readers of STHT will know I took my advanced driving test afew years ago, and still keep up the standard by mentoring other through their test. Technology is currently no replacement at all for being a decent driver.
If this is implemented then cars registered in the 12 months before will depreiciate very slowly. Think of it, someone looking at used MX-5s in 2025. Do you want the 3 year old car that will do 70 or the 4 year old that does 120?
I am surprised that can happen given that radar control works using the distance to the car in front, not the speed sign displayed (on an adjacant road) or speed limit recorded in the sat nav database.
I would strongly suspect this technology is already in many vehicles. (the electronic one, not the wife one)
For at least 3 or 4 years now many new cars have had speed sign recognising technology. The first time I came across it was the launch of the Toyota CHR.
Black magic, or at least a camera, displays the current speed limit based on the last sign it has passed and displays it on the dashboard. If you are lucky enough to have the latest BMW and the like that has a head up display it will be there on the windscreen. It is no technological miracle then link that to a fly by wire throttle, like what those so dark ages MK3’s have, and have electronics make various adjustments to the throttle opening. My 10 year old Clio even has a speed limiter I can adjust, so I am pretty confident this technology will already be in the latest Merc’s Hyundai and anything else modern on the market. Equally, in my Clio, I can turn it off as I can the traction control in those dark ages MK3’s! Short press to partially disable it and long 8 second press to turn it off. If I want it back on then, I need to turn the ignition on and off again to reset it. It is shocking, who would have thought Mazda would put such devious technology, seen through out the threads on this forum for keeping people out of ditches, in a MX-5?
One local council seems to have fouled-up on that score. About 18 months ago they put up signs showing the speed limit as 40mph, down from the national speed limit of 60mph. Someone hasn’t updated the sat nav info because the display still shows 60mph.
Apparently there will be a switch that will allow you to turn off the system which will have to be reset everytime you start the vehicle, much like turning off stop-start.
Apparently this switch will only be fitted to vehicles immediately after the legislation comes into force and will be phased out after a period of time.
In yesterday’s Daily Telegraph: "The Commission wanted to make it compulsory that the car would automatically slow down to observe speed limits but we have secured a compromise where the system merely has to alert the driver that he or she is speeding. (Daniel Dalton, Tory MEP for West Midlands).
That being so, my new GT Sport Nav+ already has this. The front facing camera identifies the current speed limit from the speed limit signs and displays it in the left hand gauge of the instrument cluster. If I exceed this limit the red surround of the symbol flashes orange 3 times then stays on and, at the same time, the car also beeps discreetly 3 times. This is user configurable, the default is for this not to be turned on but I like to know and be reminded discreetly if I’m over the top. I can then, as a sentient being, consider whether it’s appropriate or not to continue.
There are, as others above have pointed out, false indications and times when the system doesn’t know the current limit (because, e.g., the sign has been hidden by foliage) and I have definitely had the sign indicate 30 in a 60 limit when it read a misaligned speed limit sign in a side road, so the idea that the car controls your speed from this info is currently unrealistic and positively dangerous.
Pretty sure similar arguments were used when seat belts use was being made compulsory. I certainly remember “caution, this car is fitted with ABS” signs.
I am involved in a lot of driver training. More than 50% of the people we see, many of who drive as part of their job, so considered professional drivers, do not have the first understanding of what ABS does and how it can help them, or any of the other active safety systems on their vehicles that are quietly doing their job keeping them on the road. More to the point, I cannot recall a single driver, but let’s be generous and say 99% of drivers, that are not physically shocked by just how much braking distance increases from just 30 to 40mph. Out of literally hundreds of drivers I cannot recall a single one saying “I knew that would happen.” I can recall hundreds saying “I never knew it would make such a difference!”
These “modern” safety features, such as ESC are pretty much standardised now and are very much responsible for ensuring a large number of drivers actually get to see their front door at night. Will the adoption of speed limiters stop accidents? No. Will they ensure more people get to see their grandchildren? Yes. Will it make Audi drivers use indicators? No.
Despite this sweeping change across the EU, Great Britain has decided not to implement the regulation. The UK Department for Transport (DfT) has confirmed that cars in Great Britain will remain unaffected by this mandate.
However, the regulation will apply to vehicles in Northern Ireland, aligning with EU standards due to the specific regulatory circumstances post-Brexit.
I’m sure we’ll see it creep in through standardisation of manufacturing if nothing else. Not a massive deal though, just another driving aid to switch off before setting off.
Lane keep assist - Off
Start/Stop - Off (until oil hits 80C)
Speed Limiter - Off