<b>(AP) -- Toyota Motor Corp. is developing a fail-safe system for cars that detects drunken drivers and automatically shuts the vehicle down if sensors pick up signs of excessive alcohol consumption, a news report said Wednesday. </b>
Cars fitted with the detection system will not start if sweat sensors in the driving wheel detect high levels of alcohol in the driver’s bloodstream, according to a report carried by the mass-circulation daily, Asahi Shimbun.
The system could also kick in if the sensors detect abnormal steering, or if a special camera shows that the driver’s pupils are not in focus. The car is then slowed to a halt, the report said.
The world’s No. 2 automaker hopes to fit cars with the system by the end of 2009, according to the report. Calls to Toyota’s headquarters in Nagoya rang unanswered on Wednesday, a public holiday.
Nissan Motor Co., another Japanese car manufacturer, has already been experimenting with breathalyzer-like devices that could detect if a driver was drunken. Similar technologies, such as alcohol ignition interlocks, are in use in the U.S. and elsewhere.
Concerns over drunken driving have surged in Japan following a series of alcohol-related accidents last year. In August, a drunken driver collided with another vehicle carrying a family of five, plunging them off a bridge and killing three children.
The incident prompted stepped-up roadside spot checks by police, who also plan to stiffen penalties for drunken driving.
Good thing I’ll never buy a Toyota. Granted, I NEVER drink and drive. But I’ll leave the decision of driving up to the operator, not some computer in the car. No driver aids, kthxbye.
its definitely a great idea. i think theyres a lot of ppl out there who know, when theyre sober, that drinking and driving is bad, but when theyre drunk they decide otherwise. this would be an awesome purchase for those ppl
the only one of the bunch of sensors that really bothers me is the ‘erratic driving’ one. go to auto-x or dick around in the snow, and your car will stop.
Actually, GM has that with OnStar. I remember magazines doing tests of cars equipped with OnStar and as they would slalom and test the brakes, an OnStar person would call and say “Sir are you OK? We detected some unusual driving patterns.”
Good point, now you really hope your airbag doesnt go off.
I ran into that onstar stuff with my dads 02 bonneville SSEI, I drive a lot harder than he does and they called to check to make sure everything was ok.
knowing Ford an GM, they will probably come out with a new marketing scheme.
If ur gonna drink and drive, do it with us!!! we have ppl that monitor ur shitty driving and call and ask if ur ok. so when u crash our car while drinking, we’ll rescue you.
Or what if I’m DD’ing a bunch of drunks and the alcohol detectors in the car shut it down because they detect the drunks I’m driving? Etc, etc, etc. This is a BAD system, Jailtime is the best alternative. So those of you that support this system, do you support GPS systems that track you and ticket you if you speed? Or cars with regulators? etc etc. Same thing in my book.
IMO the punishments should be more severe for DWIs, I think that alone could lead to a decrease in incidents. It’s not really up to the car manufacturers to control this, its people themselves and the law makers who don’t punish drivers who drink enough.
jailtime is NOT enough. not to mention ppl get off too easy.
comparing this, to giving out speeding tix is retarded. No cops are gonna show up to ur car and arrest you. If this kind of technology went into all cars, it would eliminate drunk driving.
a lot of ppl die from drinking and driving. more so then speeding or other more minor things. This will DEFINTELY do better then jailtime. That is for the simple reason that if u got jailtime, youve already gotten behind the wheel and drove under the influence.
if u think this is stupid, then you are infact stupid.