Volvo testing ways to stop drunk drivers (built-in breathalyzer)

Washington Times ^ | Aug. 24, 2005 | UPI

[QQQQQ]

The Swedish unit of U.S. carmaker Ford Motor Co. is experimenting with a built-in breathalyzer and speed governor to reduce road accidents.

The breathalyzer is part of the seat belt mechanism, and before the car will start, the driver must blow below .08 percent or less with the belt buckled.

The test vehicle also is equipped with a special set of ignition keys that can be programmed to limit the car to preset speeds, which would enable parents to have control over inexperienced teenagers.

[QQQQQ]

Who in their right mind would buy this car?

[finnman69]

[QQQQQ]

My concern is that if Volvo makes such a car, the US government will mandate that all cars should have it.

And what if it malfunctions, you can't get your car started. Great! :(

And what if you need some extra speed to avoid an accident, but your car is programmed not to allow you to get to that speed.

[martin_fierro]

Please.

Driving lessons should come as a standard component of a Volvo sale.

[ncountylee]

Same as now. The warm and fuzzy types.

[Rakkasan1]

anyone who voted for Janklow

[QQQQQ]

This is more of punishing everyone for the bad actions of the few.

[tfecw]

Volvo probably did a lot of research and are hoping to hit the "parents who buy their kids cars" market.

[HamiltonJay]

Someone married to a drunk maybe?

[JimWforBush]

I am certainly not going to rush out and buy one

[HairOfTheDog]

Who in their right mind would buy this car?

Not me... but the answer is in your excerpt: parents to have control over inexperienced teenagers.

[QQQQQ]

"Volvo probably did a lot of research and are hoping to hit the "parents who buy their kids cars" market."

If parents would TEACH their kids to act responsibly, they wouldn't need such cars. If you can't trust the kid, without rigging the car, the kid shouldn't be driving in the first place.

[Lx]

Remember, if you're a liberal, it's always safety first and I have great confidence in that fine looking scissors jack that I'd allow him to get under the car using it.

[rockabyebaby]

The way SCOTUS is ruling these days, it's just a matter of time before car manufacturers are sued because of an accident caused by a drunk.

[Mr. Blonde]

Judging by Volvo's record people who like to walk away from car crashes. I don't agree with these measures, but like all things if you still want the car but not those things there are ways to get around it I'm sure.

[coconutt2000]

What about a heart rate sensor built into the seat. When your heart rate spikes, the speed limitation is suspended until your heart rate returns to normal?

And maybe an autopilot, GPS locator beacon, and a security camera connected to the web... Ooooh.... I should write to Volvo with all of my ideas. :-)

[Abathar]

Don't use mouthwash before you get in either, or you will be late for work.

[The_Victor]

Sounds like a good reason to buy a different manufacturer's car.

[KC_for_Freedom]

In my Systems Engineering Class for new Lockheed employees we developed specifications for such a system. (As an exercise on what specifications mean and why they are written down first.)

To preserve the right to drive in an emergency we allowed a switch to be set after failing the alcohol test that would turn on the emergency lights and beep the horn to alert the authorities that this driver (a) was driving under restrictions, and (b) was likely faced with some emergency that required overriding the test.

The same could be used on a speed control, but the parents would know the speed level reached.

As far as malfunctions, the override takes care of that as well.

I would only have this device put on a car of a habitual drunk driver, after due process by a judge. They let them driver over and over because they plead that without driving they will lose their job, so the judges let them drive anyway. One guy killed a cyclist after 12 dui's, and he was drunk this time too.

[QQQQQ]

They are already working on your ideas.

See this article:

"The safety-conscious automaker wants to test a new technology that is designed to make the car take control of steering when a driver's reaction time is slowed down because of intoxication or fatigue."

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1447406/posts