What We’re Reading
May 18, 2022
Safe Driver Assistance Tech Now More Important Than Self-Driving Cars, Consumers Say (Forbes, May 12, 2022)
According to a recent AAA survey, consumer distrust of “self-driving” technology remains high, with 77% of respondents indicating they “were more interested in improved vehicle safety systems than in self-driving cars.” These survey results were backed by crash testing performed by the organization, which found that Level 2 vehicles “failed to consistently avoid crashes with another car or bicycle during 15 test runs.”
AAA reported the results of this crash testing in its recently-released Evaluation of Active Driver Assistance Systems, which identifies key findings in response to the questions “how do vehicles equipped with ADA systems perform when encountering a possible collision with another passenger vehicle” or “with a cyclist.”
Researchers tested vehicles manufactured by Hyundai, Subaru, and Tesla. In evaluating the test vehicles’ performance when encountering a possible collision with a cyclist, the researchers specifically collected and reviewed various data points from the test vehicles, captured by several data logging tools, and found:
For a cyclist traveling in the lane ahead of the test vehicle, no collisions occurred during a total of 15 test runs; BUT
For a cyclist crossing the travel lane of the test vehicle, a collision occurred during 5 out of 15 test runs.
AAA has urged “automakers to listen to consumers and improve what is currently available before focusing on future technology.”
Hyundai is Becoming Tesla's Biggest Threat (Jalopnik, May 16, 2022)
“Hyundai and Kia’s new EVs are shaping up as a boon to their hopes of establishing dominance at the still-early stages of the EV market share race,” said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights at Edmunds. “Whereas the South Korean organization once had to really prove their value to the American consumer, they now seem to be in a much more comfortable, enviable position near the forefront of the EV trend.”
Hyundai and Kia have been producing EVs “since the middle of the last decade,” and the new Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 models, fully loaded, are being compared to the Tesla Model Y in the few months since their launch in the U.S. market. The affordable base models are competing with Toyota, VW, and Ford. Additionally, Hyundai has stated that its luxury brand, Genesis, will be exclusively making EVs by 2025, and will introduce three new EV models by the end of next year.
And What We’ll Be Watching . . .
What Can We Learn from a New Documentary on Elon Musk? (The Guardian, May 17, 2022)
“A New York Times/FX documentary focuses on the deadly disconnect between the Tesla CEO’s promises for Autopilot self-driving tech and its capability.” In the latest installment of the Times/FX documentary series streaming on Hulu, two Times reporters explore the actual functionality of Tesla’s Autopilot compared with how it has been sold in the media through interviews with former employees, regulators, and other interested parties.