70 MPH: EU plans to fit all cars with speed limiters

[presence]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/road-safety/10278702/EU-plans-to-fit-all-cars-with-speed-limiters.html


EU plans to fit all cars with speed limiters

All cars could be fitted with devices that stop them going over 70mph, under new EU road safety measures which aim to cut deaths from road accidents by a third.

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02268/CC0N73_2268160b.jpg All cars could be fitted with speed limiters under new EU proposals Photo: ALAMY








By Claire Carter

8:49AM BST 01 Sep 2013



Under the proposals new cars would be fitted with cameras that could read road speed limit signs and automatically apply the brakes when this is exceeded.

Patrick McLoughlin, the Transport Secretary, is said to be opposed to the plans, which could also mean existing cars are sent to garages to be fitted with the speed limiters, preventing them from going over 70mph.

The new measures have been announced by the European Commission’s Mobility and Transport Department as a measure to reduce the 30,000 people who die on the roads in Europe every year.

A Government source told the Mail on Sunday Mr McLoughlin had instructed officials to block the move because they ‘violated’ motorists’ freedom. They said: “This has Big Brother written all over it and is exactly the sort of thing that gets people's backs up about Brussels.

“The Commission wanted his views ahead of plans to publish the proposals this autumn. He made it very clear what those views were.” against the Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA) scheme is that the UK has a better road safety record than other European countries – with 1,754 people dying in road accidents last year compared to 3,657 in Germany.

The scheme would work either using satellites, which would communicate limits to cars automatically, or using cameras to read road signs. Drivers can be given a warning of the speed limit, or their speed could be controlled automatically under the new measures.

A spokesman for the European Commission said: “There is a currently consultation focusing on speed-limiting technology already fitted to HGVs and buses.
“Taking account of the results, the Commission will publish in the autumn a document by its technical experts which will no doubt refer to ISA among many other things.”

[tod evans]

This will never float, not because of the freedom issue, but because of the revenue issue..

[presence]

This will never float, not because of the freedom issue, but because of the revenue issue..

sagacious

[MelissaWV]

I would be curious to know what the effect on the car itself would be. If you are "limited" remotely to 70mph, and you keep hitting the gas trying to go faster, what happens? How does the car handle that over time?

What if the "sign" is coded incorrectly, and you wind up going from 70 down to 30 or something? Who becomes liable for THOSE injuries?

[thoughtomator]

They're going to freaking love that in Germany. :rolleyes:

[RonPaulFanInGA]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/road-safety/10278702/EU-plans-to-fit-all-cars-with-speed-limiters.html

[green73]

already posted. i almost posted this myself (12 hours ago), but then did a search.

[GunnyFreedom]

Um. My first thought here is why in the world is the article talking about 70MPH instead of 113Kph? I'm not trying to be all conspiracy or anything, but if the EU did this why would they not have made it "120Kph" (which is more like 75MPH)? Assuming they are actually talking about Kph, why is the UK Telegraph reporting in MPH except that they are doing it solely for the benefit of Americans?


Something is out of sorts here.

[Peace Piper]

http://img22.imageshack.us/img22/2885/5h0v.jpg

http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/6874/k03q.jpg

[RonPaulFanInGA]

why is the UK Telegraph reporting in MPH except that they are doing it solely for the benefit of Americans?

And their own British readership?

Papers convert units into whatever is most known by its readership all the time. You don't think articles in foreign countries talking about U.S. news (like how many feet that kid fell in the Pittsburgh zoo) offer a metric measurement too?

[presence]

Thread: 70 MPH: EU plans to fit all cars with speed limiters (http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?426046-70-MPH-EU-plans-to-fit-all-cars-with-speed-limiters)

Today 09:30 AM

presence (http://www.ronpaulforums.com/member.php?36577-presence)
http://www.ronpaulforums.com/images/statusicon/user-online.png

[Anti Federalist]

I would be curious to know what the effect on the car itself would be. If you are "limited" remotely to 70mph, and you keep hitting the gas trying to go faster, what happens? How does the car handle that over time?

What if the "sign" is coded incorrectly, and you wind up going from 70 down to 30 or something? Who becomes liable for THOSE injuries?

New computer cars handle it just fine.

The ECM monitors and controls all car functions.

Think of it as nothing more than cruise control, set no higher than 70 MPH.

This was only a matter of time.

Thanks for this belong in no small part to the "I can't wait for self driving cars" crowd. :rolleyes:

Nice work guys.

Throw it all in the woods.

[Anti Federalist]

I would be curious to know what the effect on the car itself would be. If you are "limited" remotely to 70mph, and you keep hitting the gas trying to go faster, what happens? How does the car handle that over time?

What if the "sign" is coded incorrectly, and you wind up going from 70 down to 30 or something? Who becomes liable for THOSE injuries?

New computer cars handle it just fine.

The ECM monitors and controls all car functions.

Think of it as nothing more than cruise control, set no higher than 70 MPH.

This was only a matter of time.

Thanks for this belong in no small part to the "I can't wait for self driving cars" crowd. :rolleyes:

Nice work guys.

Throw it all in the fucking woods. :mad:

[Origanalist]

New computer cars handle it just fine.

The ECM monitors and controls all car functions.

Think of it as nothing more than cruise control, set no higher than 70 MPH.

This was only a matter of time.

Thanks for this belong in no small part to the "I can't wait for self driving cars" crowd. :rolleyes:

Nice work guys.

Throw it all in the woods.

http://www.imgrind.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/progress.jpg

[MelissaWV]

New computer cars handle it just fine.

The ECM monitors and controls all car functions.

Think of it as nothing more than cruise control, set no higher than 70 MPH.

This was only a matter of time.

Thanks for this belong in no small part to the "I can't wait for self driving cars" crowd. :rolleyes:

Nice work guys.

Throw it all in the woods.

I don't think anyone knows how cars "handle it" long term.

[presence]

I don't think anyone knows how cars "handle it" long term.

Might want to ask a Cuban.

[Anti Federalist]

Fast becoming reality:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAvQSkK8Z8U

"Red Barchetta"


My uncle has a country place
That no one knows about
He says it used to be a farm
Before the Motor Law
And on Sundays I elude the eyes
And hop the Turbine Freight
To far outside the Wire
Where my white-haired uncle waits

Jump to the ground
As the Turbo slows to cross the borderline
Run like the wind
As excitement shivers up and down my spine
Down in his barn
My uncle preserved for me an old machine
For fifty odd years
To keep it as new has been his dearest dream

I strip away the old debris
That hides a shining car
A brilliant red Barchetta
From a better vanished time
I fire up the willing engine
Responding with a roar
Tires spitting gravel
I commit my weekly crime

Wind
In my hair
Shifting and drifting
Mechanical music
Adrenaline surge...

Well-weathered leather
Hot metal and oil
The scented country air
Sunlight on chrome
The blur of the landscape
Every nerve aware

Suddenly ahead of me
Across the mountainside
A gleaming alloy air car
Shoots towards me, two lanes wide
I spin around with shrieking tires
To run the deadly race
Go screaming through the valley
As another joins the chase

Drive like the wind
Straining the limits of machine and man
Laughing out loud with fear and hope
I've got a desperate plan
At the one-lane bridge
I leave the giants stranded at the riverside
Race back to the farm
To dream with my uncle at the fireside

[Anti Federalist]

I don't think anyone knows how cars "handle it" long term.

What is this "long term" you talk of?

No vehicle older than 3 years will be permitted for use on public roads.

Clean Air Act/UN policy of 2020 mandated.

[Anti Federalist]

dupe post

[Anti Federalist]

The world of the future that the technocrats are building, now, will not need you.

[Danan]

They're going to freaking love that in Germany. :rolleyes:

Which should be reason enough why it's never going to happen. No chance. They can't even introduce a general speed limit over there. I seriously doubt that this is an actual plan.

[better-dead-than-fed]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/road-safety/10278702/EU-plans-to-fit-all-cars-with-speed-limiters.html

For a second I thought it said investigative journalists' cars would not be able to go under 70 MPH.

[NorfolkPCSolutions]

Yeah...this'll help keep people safe. Speed kills - crashing into things does. Oh, wait...

[VIDEODROME]

Lol.

I had a regulated truck when I did commercial driving. Now the 4-wheelers can have a taste of regulated speed.

Wait till you try to pass someone and you can't. :D

[Scrapmo]

The police will lobby heavily against this if it comes to the US. This cuts into their revenue stream.

[osan]

Stoopid candy-ass progressive socialist pussies - how can they stand themselves?

I can tell you first hand that Europeans drive like fucking idiots. They are all insane no matter where you go, save maybe the scandinavians and they're just hopeless sissies anymore.

That aside, limiting speed to 70 isn't going to change a thing because it isn't the speed that kills them, it's the lunacy of how they drive, especially their passing behaviors. I am no candy-ass driver and anyone who drives with me can attest, and even I can barely stand to be in a car with someone from Europe on their roadways. They get into head-ons more than anything else - all those shitty little roads and no patience and so they pass and often drive face-first into those huge, flat-faced cab-overs made by companies like M.A.N. who build their trucks like bloody war vehicles.

It seems that governments worldwide are now constitutionally incapable of making ANY right decisions. It would appear that stupidity has become the foundation, abetted by all this high tech. Talk about dangerous marriages

[Carson]

Lol.

I had a regulated truck when I did commercial driving. Now the 4-wheelers can have a taste of regulated speed.

Wait till you try to pass someone and you can't. :D

You mean like your having no trouble following them at a speed way under the speed limit but when you go to pass they seem to have decided to accelerate to a speed that your going way over the speed limit to get around them?

I suppose both being able to only accelerate to an equal speed of around 70 should make for some interesting driving.


I'm thinking the headline must be an error when it says all. Surly the regulators will have exemptions for themselves and others.

[Southron]

Lol.

I had a regulated truck when I did commercial driving. Now the 4-wheelers can have a taste of regulated speed.

Wait till you try to pass someone and you can't. :D

At least some trucks will back out of it and let you go if you are .1 mph faster. Good luck luck with the 4-wheelers.

[AFPVet]

Most cars already have electronic limiters in them which are based on the speed rating of the tires. The PCM cuts fuel when you attempt to exceed the established parameters... only in this instance, the limiters are not based on tires, but a predetermined 70 MPH limit.

Of course, like most cars today, one can easily override the limiter. All people would really have to do is get an aftermarket tuner to raise the limiter. People install ZR tires and adjust limiters all the time with aftermarket tuners.

[Feeding the Abscess]

Hope nobody is late for work over there.

[Henry Rogue]

Lol.

I had a regulated truck when I did commercial driving. Now the 4-wheelers can have a taste of regulated speed.

Wait till you try to pass someone and you can't. :DMy brother had a saying " Lead or follow, but don't tie." In other words don't pace the car you're passing.

[BamaAla]

Um. My first thought here is why in the world is the article talking about 70MPH instead of 113Kph? I'm not trying to be all conspiracy or anything, but if the EU did this why would they not have made it "120Kph" (which is more like 75MPH)? Assuming they are actually talking about Kph, why is the UK Telegraph reporting in MPH except that they are doing it solely for the benefit of Americans?


Something is out of sorts here.

Not solely for the benefit of Americans but Brits as well; they use MPH too.

[GunnyFreedom]

And their own British readership?

Papers convert units into whatever is most known by its readership all the time. You don't think articles in foreign countries talking about U.S. news (like how many feet that kid fell in the Pittsburgh zoo) offer a metric measurement too?

I just looked it up. I was in error. Apparently the UK still marks in MPH. I thought they had gone full metric.

[Jackie Moon]

They're going to freaking love that in Germany. :rolleyes:

My first thought also.


All cars could be fitted with devices that stop them going over 70mph

http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/37791373.jpg

[GunnyFreedom]

Not solely for the benefit of Americans but Brits as well; they use MPH too.

Learn something new every day. :)

The Germans are going to HATE this on their Autobahns. I'm betting German police will conveniently ignore the law on the Autobahn.

ETA -- And German black markets will make a mint disabling the limiters

[QuickZ06]

I don't think anyone knows how cars "handle it" long term.

It will not do a thing to hurt the vehicle at all. They already have these types of speed governors on trucks that certain company's already use here in the states.

[Anti Federalist]

I hate to rain on everybody's parade here, but the will be no "getting around" this kind of stuff once it comes fully online.

The roads are under surveillance, the cars are all wirelessly networked in, any attempt to disable this, or a million other big brother boxes that are just now coming on the market, will result in either a fine sent right to your address, or a remote shut off and lockdown, where you will sit and wait, locked in your, now deader than Julius Caesar, car until SWAT arrives.

[GunnyFreedom]

I hate to rain on everybody's parade here, but the will be no "getting around" this kind of stuff once it comes fully online.

The roads are under surveillance, the cars are all wirelessly networked in, any attempt to disable this, or a million other big brother boxes that are just now coming on the market, will result in either a fine sent right to your address, or a remote shut off and lockdown, where you will sit and wait, locked in your, now deader than Julius Caesar, car until SWAT arrives.

That's why I said black market. If someone can jailbreak an iPhone, then someone can jaibreak an ECU

[GunnyFreedom]

Hell, give me some test equipment and enough to put a C++ programmer on staff, and I'll make replacement ECUs that they will try to remote control and get awful disappointed when I didn't bother to leave any hooks in it.

[Anti Federalist]

That's why I said black market. If someone can jailbreak an iPhone, then someone can jaibreak an ECU
"Break" me a phone that will work normally on any major network, make and receive calls, and roam properly, but has no tracking info, including E911.

I'll buy.

[GunnyFreedom]

"Break" me a phone that will work normally on any major network, make and receive calls, and roam properly, but has no tracking info, including E911.

I'll buy.

A jailbroken iPhone can do it, aside from the limitation that reporting to new towers while travelling is required for it's basic function. If you fiddle with the kernel you could make it so it only pings towers on command, ie when you want to actually use it. Of course that would be a headache if you were driving since it would drop the call whenever you passed out of the range of the tower you connected on. But yeah, that's totally possible. It may already be a jailbreak install, but it's not exactly popular because nobody wants a phone mod to drop calls whenever passing out of a tower's range. They already jailbreak to operate on multiple networks, so everything but the restriction on tower-ping is already a point-to-click install, and I'd be more surprised if that weren't available than if it were.

Every technological tyranny will have a technological countermeasure. Believe me, I get the whole technology as a tool of tyranny thing, if you go that route you have to keep up with all the new exploits and all the new countermeasures and it can get to be a PITA. But you really can tech while flying under the radar. It just takes a lot of work.

[LibertyRevolution]

I once had a car with a speed limiter, a 1995 Pontiac Grand Am GT.
It was limited to 113MPH.
They have some strange fixation with this number 113?

My 1992 subaru SVX has no limiter that I can find, Y rated tires 186+ MPH.

[Danke]

lol. It reminds me of my 3 years driving on the Autobahn if a Corvette.

A German guard at the back gate of the base said I needed a front license plate, I told him the Corvette was exempt. :) The front gate had American Security Police, never gave me shit.

Anyway, two weeks later I went through the back gate again and that anal retentive guard said he checked, and I needed front plates. I got a three day notice to fix it. Oh well, no more ignoring the forward flash cameras on the Autobahn.

[GunnyFreedom]

lol. It reminds me of my 3 years driving on the Autobahn if a Corvette.

A German guard at the back gate of the base said I needed a front license plate, I told him the Corvette was exempt. :) The front gate had American Security Police, never gave me shit.

Anyway, two weeks later I went through the back gate again and that anal retentive guard said he checked, and I needed front plates. I got a three day notice to fix it. Oh well, no more ignoring the forward flash cameras on the Autobahn.

What's the point of forward flash cameras on the autobahn? To ticket people who are not allowed on it? I was under the impression they there was no speed limit there.

[Danke]

"Break" me a phone that will work normally on any major network, make and receive calls, and roam properly, but has no tracking info, including E911.

I'll buy.

I don't know if his service offers what you are looking for, but it has offered me many functions I needed.

http://smart-root.com/

[Scrapmo]

If this is implemented here I garuntee that Speed limits would be reduced to 65 therby allowing cops to still write speeding tickets. Oh, also, tickets for going 1-5 over will be more common as well as a fine increases for those infractions. You dont think cops will give up that revenue do you?

[PaulConventionWV]

If this is implemented here I garuntee that Speed limits would be reduced to 65 therby allowing cops to still write speeding tickets. Oh, also, tickets for going 1-5 over will be more common as well as a fine increases for those infractions. You dont think cops will give up that revenue do you?

It's confusing that they would even do it in the EU. Also, it's not necessarily the "cops" who aren't going to lose that revenue. The government won't do it, period. The federal government wants revenue just as much as the states do. They're not going to implement this kind of measure because it goes against everything that government here works for... unless they really are concerned about our safety... but no. I still can't figure out why the EU would do it. Apparently they've moved past money and are now focusing all their resources on controlling the population. Very interesting.

[eduardo89]

Um. My first thought here is why in the world is the article talking about 70MPH instead of 113Kph? I'm not trying to be all conspiracy or anything, but if the EU did this why would they not have made it "120Kph" (which is more like 75MPH)? Assuming they are actually talking about Kph, why is the UK Telegraph reporting in MPH except that they are doing it solely for the benefit of Americans?


Something is out of sorts here.

The UK uses mph, not km/h. The UK has a maximum speed limit of 70mph.

[Demigod]

Stoopid candy-ass progressive socialist pussies - how can they stand themselves?

I can tell you first hand that Europeans drive like fucking idiots. They are all insane no matter where you go, save maybe the scandinavians and they're just hopeless sissies anymore.

That aside, limiting speed to 70 isn't going to change a thing because it isn't the speed that kills them, it's the lunacy of how they drive, especially their passing behaviors. I am no candy-ass driver and anyone who drives with me can attest, and even I can barely stand to be in a car with someone from Europe on their roadways. They get into head-ons more than anything else - all those shitty little roads and no patience and so they pass and often drive face-first into those huge, flat-faced cab-overs made by companies like M.A.N. who build their trucks like bloody war vehicles.

It seems that governments worldwide are now constitutionally incapable of making ANY right decisions. It would appear that stupidity has become the foundation, abetted by all this high tech. Talk about dangerous marriages

That is why we have small cars,imagine the damage we could do if everyone drove SUV's.It would be like Mad Max on the roads.

[luctor-et-emergo]

What's the point of forward flash cameras on the autobahn? To ticket people who are not allowed on it? I was under the impression they there was no speed limit there.

Front flash camera's are so they can always prove in court who drove the car. Most of the Autobahn has no speed limits and it is legal to drive as fast as you want. Around cities, dangerous intersections and really busy spots there can be a speed limit, this usually is a 130pkh speed limit and sometimes a 100kph limit. Also at night around cities you are usually required to slow down in order to reduce the noise level. Usually when you drive on a highway between cities there's no speed limit, iirc about 2/3's of the autobahn has no speed limit while one third has.

They are rather strict on driving behavior though, no overtaking on the right, left hand lanes ALWAYS have to go faster than right hand lanes. In winter you are REQUIRED to have winter/soft compound tires. But Germans really know how to drive...

[TruckinMike]

Most cars already have electronic limiters in them which are based on the speed rating of the tires. The PCM cuts fuel when you attempt to exceed the established parameters... only in this instance, the limiters are not based on tires, but a predetermined 70 MPH limit.

Of course, like most cars today, one can easily override the limiter. All people would really have to do is get an aftermarket tuner to raise the limiter. People install ZR tires and adjust limiters all the time with aftermarket tuners.

Yes, and then they can expect $500 ticket for changing it. Thats what some provinces in Canada did --> for trucks. The DOT officers have computer readers.

$money$
.
.
.
.
However, there was a bit of blow-back when the DOT started frying truck computers along the roadside. I'm not sure of the situation today.

[Philhelm]

How will people time travel?

[willwash]

What's the point of forward flash cameras on the autobahn? To ticket people who are not allowed on it? I was under the impression they there was no speed limit there.

Only parts of the autobahn have no speed limit. It's their equivalent to a speed limit of 70 (or whatever the highest limit your state allows) in the US. Near major cities or in crowded or windy (wine dee, not windy as in Windy City) areas there are speed limits...as you exit these areas, you'll see a sign with the old speed limit with a slash through it. This indicates you've entered the no speed limit zone.

Where there are speed limits, there are cameras, which monitor your speed and will conveniently send a ticket to your home address if you exceed the limit. There are very few (basically no) "traffic cops" who are just on patrol looking for speeders. Germany is far too efficient for this.

[Anti Federalist]

A jailbroken iPhone can do it, aside from the limitation that reporting to new towers while travelling is required for it's basic function. If you fiddle with the kernel you could make it so it only pings towers on command, ie when you want to actually use it. Of course that would be a headache if you were driving since it would drop the call whenever you passed out of the range of the tower you connected on. But yeah, that's totally possible. It may already be a jailbreak install, but it's not exactly popular because nobody wants a phone mod to drop calls whenever passing out of a tower's range. They already jailbreak to operate on multiple networks, so everything but the restriction on tower-ping is already a point-to-click install, and I'd be more surprised if that weren't available than if it were.

Every technological tyranny will have a technological countermeasure. Believe me, I get the whole technology as a tool of tyranny thing, if you go that route you have to keep up with all the new exploits and all the new countermeasures and it can get to be a PITA. But you really can tech while flying under the radar. It just takes a lot of work.

Now we're talking.

A nice app would be one that would indicate which towers your device was pinging, and to limit it to one.

One tower is line of sight, "they" might have a bearing, but there is no accurate way to determine range with just one LOP.

No GPS and you're now, semi, off the grid.

[Anti Federalist]

Yes, and then they can expect $500 ticket for changing it. Thats what some provinces in Canada did --> for trucks. The DOT officers have computer readers.

$money$
.
.
.
.
However, there was a bit of blow-back when the DOT started frying truck computers along the roadside. I'm not sure of the situation today.

It will be a felony charge with jail time, before much longer.

But I have to disagree with you somewhat.

The money is incidental.

It's about power and control.

The people running this show will abuse us for free, they'd happily live a life of Maoist austerity, as long as they can dictate to and lord over and boss us around.

That's the bitch of this whole mess.

If it was just about money, you could bribe the fuckers and make them go away.

[Czolgosz]

Good, they deserve to be trapped at a maximum speed.

[TruckinMike]

// edit repost Weird server 500 error
.

[TruckinMike]

It will be a felony charge with jail time, before much longer.

But I have to disagree with you somewhat.

The money is incidental.

It's about power and control.

The people running this show will abuse us for free, they'd happily live a life of Maoist austerity, as long as they can dictate to and lord over and boss us around.

That's the bitch of this whole mess.

If it was just about money, you could bribe the fuckers and make them go away.

Yep, Can't argue with that.

[Anti Federalist]

// edit repost Weird server 500 error
.

Whoops, my bad. - NSA

[fearthereaperx]

Socialists always want to limit mobility.

[Zippyjuan]

Commercial trucks in the US have had limiters on them for quite some time now.

[presence]

Commercial trucks in the US have had limiters on them for quite some time now.

Not legally bound by state to do so, these are business decisions based on membership to TCA, ATA, etc.

[LibForestPaul]

I care about how autos will be controlled during "martial law" declarations. Disable cars in an entire area? Only those connected with the party have their vehicles enable? Certain indivuals get out first, just like how certain monies in Argentinia , Cyprus, and others mysteriously leave before bank failures.

[MelissaWV]

Under the proposals new cars would be fitted with cameras that could read road speed limit signs and automatically apply the brakes when this is exceeded.

I guess I was ignorant that trucks' brakes are automatically being applied based on cameras on them reading the road speed limit signs. I stand corrected. I'm sure there's no issue at all if someone is, say, trying to pass or get around a hazard at high speed and their vehicle is simultaneously applying the brakes. Cars will do great with that, and I am being silly.

[Philhelm]

I guess I was ignorant that trucks' brakes are automatically being applied based on cameras on them reading the road speed limit signs. I stand corrected. I'm sure there's no issue at all if someone is, say, trying to pass or get around a hazard at high speed and their vehicle is simultaneously applying the brakes. Cars will do great with that, and I am being silly.

That was my first thought, a scenario in which someone needs to pass another vehicle quickly (perhaps due to mergers that never, ever yield), and then...profit?

[Jackie Moon]

How will people time travel?

Whoa, this is heavy...

[Anti Federalist]

I guess I was ignorant that trucks' brakes are automatically being applied based on cameras on them reading the road speed limit signs. I stand corrected. I'm sure there's no issue at all if someone is, say, trying to pass or get around a hazard at high speed and their vehicle is simultaneously applying the brakes. Cars will do great with that, and I am being silly.

No, Mundane, you are not being silly.

We just don't care.

[Anti Federalist]

Well, I Told You So… .

by eric • September 3, 2013 • 49 Comments

http://ericpetersautos.com/2013/09/03/speed-limiters-rolled/

Remember a few weeks back when I wrote about the ’14 Lincoln MKZ – and the creepy real-time updating “Speed Limit Currently Is” warning icon displayed in the gauge cluster? The way it knew whether you were “speeding”? The way the car slowed down without any input from you when it felt the need? (Read here for more about that.)

Now comes confirmation – via Europe – where it’s all ultimately headed.

You’re not gonna like it.

But don’t say I didn’t warn you:

The European Commission’s Mobility and Transport Department – which wields regulatory power over most of Western Europe’s roads – has put forth a proposal under the typically banal-bureaucratic-sounding rubric, Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA). It would use the technology I referenced in the MKZ write-up – which endows a car with the power to know the speed limit on any given road, updated continuously in real time via in car-cameras/ GPS – in conjunction with automated braking – to electronically prevent the car from ever being driven faster than the posted speed limit.

News story here.

The hard (and soft) ware would be made mandatory – and not only for new cars. Older cars that didn’t come with the technology from the factory would be required to submit to a retrofitting – at the expense of the owner, of course.

But the most ominous angle is the one not mentioned in any news story. It is, simply, that all cars more than a few years old would be banned from the road if this measure becomes law. Reason? They can’t be retrofitted. At least, not within economic reason.

For instance, if a vehicle does not have ABS – four-wheel ABS (many trucks, even fairly recent models, only have rear-wheel ABS) – it can’t be made to brake automatically, via computer control. The only way to “fix” that would be to gut and replace the factory-installed non-ABS brake system with an ABS system – and now we’re talking money. An ABS pump, wheel speed sensors at each wheel, specialized master cylinder and brake distribution box – plus all the necessary software to make it work – tied into a computer capable of governing the works (the factory unit may not be, in which case, a new, ABS-friendly computer would also be required).

You’d need to address throttle inputs – and that entails drive-by-wire, which most cars more than a few years old do not have. Ditto the GPS unit – necessary for the “real time” updating of speed limit data as you drive.

Holy mother! There is some money to be made.

And control to be had.

But here’s where it gets really clever: If a given vehicle does not have a computer at all, forget it. Such cars also can’t be controlled – at least, not without a wholesale re-engineering of their entire drivetrains at prohibitive cost. This means virtually all cars made before the early 1980s – and almost all motorcycles, for you bikers, made before the early 2000s – would be rendered illegal to operate.

You might say: So what? That’s The EU, not the US. To which I’d reply: If only. What’s done in Europe first – everything from the Prussian government school model to the UK’s cameras everywhere – seems to be imitated here within a few years.

I have been ranting about this eventuality like a kind of automotive Savanarola for years now. Perhaps it is because, as an automotive journalist, I have become pretty good at noticing automotive trends before they become obvious to people outside the industry. The way the pieces are going to fit into the puzzle. One such piece of the puzzle is the fact that the car companies have gone completely corporate. They no longer cross swords with government. They might as well be an agency of the government. They have learned it is easier – and much more profitable – to anticipate what government will eventually mandate.

And more, to push themselves for it being made mandatory.

That way, instead of having to sweat, say, a competitor who does not force-feed its customers black box data recorders, they all get together and egg on the passage of a law requiring them to force-feed customers black box data recorders. GM tried to do do this with Daytime Running Lamps, too. And it is exactly how we’ll be force-fed things like mandatory in-car GPS, cameras that can “see” speed limit signs – and automatic throttle control/braking to force us to obey them.

How could anyone object? After all, it is accepted conventional wisdom that “speed” kills. Why, therefore, should anyone be allowed to speed? (Cops and Dear Leaders excepted, of course.)

The only way to counteract any of this is to challenge the basis of all of it. Not merely the idiocy that “speed” kills. That’s just Romper Room twaddle and everyone – Clovers excepted – knows it already. The more profound avenue of attack is to challenge the right of our would-be (and, increasingly, actual) controllers to control us in any way whatsoever, absent actual harm done to others – including most of all for our “safety” – which is none of their got-damned business.

When enough of us awaken to this – and get mad enough to insist that our right to be left in peace absent actual harm done to others be respected, that no other individual (or group of individuals) has any right to meddle in our affairs in any way whatsoever unless someone else has been harmed – then the problem will take care of itself.

Our task is to incite rage against any person – inside government or inside a corporation – who thinks he’s got the right to control/restrain/threaten his fellow man for any reason that’s not self-defense.

For his “safety” least of all.

[Anti Federalist]

///