BillK

There was a report on my local news this morning that the NHTSA is studying stability control programs on cars (like Porsche's PSM and Audi's ESP) with an eye towards making such systems mandatory on all cars.

The usual stats were rolled out - "over 30,000 accidents a year would be prevented if stability control were mandatory," and "wouldn't preventing those be worth it," etc.

So, if the lack of stability control has been holding you back, wait a few years and it may be mandatory...

Euclid

Hurray for making car prices go up!

wickerbill

Our local news had the same report. My vote goes to spending that money on teaching Americans how to drive.

Road Rage

..or brake? (ABS)
..or never crash? (air bags, air curtains)

These technology advances are inevitable - the govt threatens, and then the customers demand.

Of course, some are better than others - the 3rd brake light has been a waste of money by most analyses. So are DRl's unless you are a Canadian.

fltsfshr

all i know is...when i went looking for a roadster...i tested the bmw m ...went like hell cornered like crazy but it felt like a videogame...the road control took the feel out of the car...the boxster i tried sounded great but again to much compensationI don't know if that was electronic or just because they wanted a compromise...then i drove an S an bought it on the spot...i don't think i'm a fan of puterized road control.......

fltsfshr

cdelena

Stability sensors and computers can go things the driver could never do (touch a single brake for a few milliseconds, etc.) so it has amazing things to offer. It is just a matter of time before the technology matures and the programming gets transparent to the driver. I think it is a great advance and look forward to mature cost effective systems on all my cars.

People scoffed at computer engine controls, advances in braking, lighting, even tires, only to accept the new technology as 'must have' equipment.

PedalFaster

The technology to make an enthusiast-friendly stability control system already exists -- witness the use of traction control in Formula 1, and the stability control systems in Ferraris, Corvettes, and recent Porsches, all of which allow some slip angle, and are good enough that many drivers would be using them even during competition. Unfortunately, it appears that most mainstream manufacturers are, by conscious choice, biasing their stability control systems towards understeer since that's safer for almost all drivers. If such systems were made mandatory and non-disableable, sports car manufacturers would presumably tune theirs even more aggressively than they do today, so I'm not too concerned about it.

fltsfshr -- it's too late now, but just for the record both BMW's DSC and Porsche's PSM can be disabled via a dashboard switch.

Road Rage -- this has nothing to do with the subject, but if you believe daytime running lights don't work, go park beside a road, watch cars go by, and take note of which ones you see first. Regardless of weather conditions -- even if it's brilliantly sunny out -- cars with their lights on are visible before cars with their lights off. That's not to say I support making them mandatory; I don't for the completely vain reason that I don't like the way they look, but the argument that they don't work doesn't hold water.

Steve

koala

As long as there is a switch to turn it off, I'm fine with it. Or, make it so damn good that I don't even know its there.

QIKSILVR

Can you back that up regarding the third brake light? I know it has made me aware that someone is stopping up ahead before I saw the brake lights on the car right in front of me.

Regarding the drls, those are also useful imo. There have been many times that I almost missed seeing a car at dusk/dawn due to the fact they did not have headlights/drls.

koala

DRL's are a great feature. Even during the day having headlamps on can really help you see oncomming traffic.

And its great for those dumbasses that forget to turn their headlamps on during that 2 hour period before it gets "dark" - People think headlamps are just for being able to see at night, but I don't agree on that one at all.