U.S. Proposes Requiring Backup Cameras in All New Cars

[somone]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-03/u-s-proposes-cameras-in-all-new-cars-by-2014-to-stem-back-over-accidents.html

U.S. Proposes Requiring Backup Cameras in All New Cars
By Angela Greiling Keane - Dec 3, 2010

U.S. auto-safety regulators proposed requiring backup cameras on all new vehicles by 2014 to prevent drivers from backing over pedestrians, a rule that may cost as much as $2.7 billion.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which published the proposed rule today, said an average of 292 people die each year from back-over accidents, which primarily kill children and the elderly. To equip a new-vehicle fleet of 16.6 million produced in a year would cost from $1.9 billion to $2.7 billion, the agency said in the proposal, calling the cost “substantial” and saying it might reduce back-over deaths and injuries by almost half.

“There is no more tragic accident than for a parent or caregiver to back out of a garage or driveway and kill or injure an undetected child playing behind the vehicle,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. “The changes we are proposing today will help drivers see into those blind zones directly behind vehicles to make sure it is safe to back up.”

Gentex Corp., which makes camera-based automotive safety systems, may benefit from the rule, said Kevin Tynan, an automotive analyst for Bloomberg LP. Gentex rose $2.67, or 12 percent, to $25.50 at 11:18 a.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading. The gain was the biggest since Oct. 21, 2009...

[daa]

1. Up goes the price, down go sales. nt

[Xithras]

14. According to their numbers, that's $114 per car.

I'd even question THAT. A low cost, low res CCD can be had wholesale for about $8 nowadays, and small screens have plummeted in price thanks to smartphones. The overall hardware cost for this could be under $50 per car. The seatbelts cost more. When you factor out the cost savings from losing the old dimming mirror (which will no longer be needed), the overall cost impact drops even further.

I put a backup camera system in my wifes Caravan last year. Even at retail prices, the whole thing only cost me about $100. I spent $60 on a 5" RCA color screen, about $25 for a small weatherproof camera from Ebay, and another $15 on cables. Took me about a half day to put it all together.

Why did she want it? Because....drumroll please...one of the kids in her class was seriously injured when his mom backed HER minivan over him. It didn't kill him, but IIRC he ended up with a broken pelvis and internal injuries. He was 6 years old at the time.

For all practical purposes, we're just talking about the modernization of the rear view mirror here, something that is ALREADY required on cars under federal law. Back in the 1940's a piece of mirrorized glass was the only option, and was sufficient for auto designs of the day. The glass mirror is not always sufficient on MODERN car designs to actually see behind you, and modern technology allows superior options to be implemented at little additional cost. It makes sense to update the laws.

[brendan120678]

16. Retrofitting a current car with the camera system...

may be cheap, but car models that do not currently have them built in will need some slight re-engineering work done to accommodate the wiring, location, etc.

[daa]

18. 114 here 114 there

maybe it doesn't add up to you. Myabe that camera is important to you, so buy it if you have the need. Most people can't afford health care or a NEW car anymore.

[Taitertots]

20. How much an hour did you pay yourself to put it in?

What tools did you use?
Did you pay for your driveway?
How much did you pay yourself for designing that system?
How much did you pay for internet access to buy the parts?

$114 for a back up camera sounds reasonable.

[PBS Poll-435]

2. Good

Because of previous regulation, cars have side-curtain airbags, ABS, and stability control now.

[Canuckistanian]

3. Sooo.... looks like good time to invest in Gentek

Right, Secretary LaHood?

[gmoney]

5. it's up 10% today already.

[Subdivisions]

7. Blackrock, Inc. owns nearly 7,000,000 shares, if that tells you anything. n/t

[Canuckistanian]

19. It tells me that Ray LaHood is a crook

That he presents a PROBLEM and a SOLUTION in the same breath - and the "solution" involves ONE company that profits mightily.

It's Michael Chertoff redux.

[Subdivisions]

8. Wells Fargo, 4,000,000 shares. n/t

[tritsofme]

4. 292 people a year?

I hate to sound cold, but this seems like a case of misplaced priorities.

Someone is making money on this, and that has to be their main concern, not safety.

[gmoney]

6. "Oh, won't somebody PLEASE think of the CHILDREN"

Seems back-up beepers would be a lot less expensive and probably more effective.

[MineralMan]

10. Three-year olds don't know what the beeper means.

If you've ever met anyone who backed over their grandchild, you'd understand.

[MineralMan]

9. Good idea. When I moved to Minnesota, I bought a used

moving truck from Uhaul, since we didn't buy a new house until we got here. That way, I could just leave everything in it at a storage yard until moving-in day. It was a good idea. After we finished the move, I sold the truck for about what I had in it to a guy who was moving from Minnesota to the East Coast.

One of the first things I did after buying the truck was to install a backup camera on it. It was the best thing I did. It made backing that 24' box truck much easier, and incredibly safer. Adding these things to all new cars will be a great boost to safety, especially for older people, who have a hard time twisting their neck around, and it will eliminate the blind spot right behind the vehicle.

[L0oniX]

11. ...and who has stock in the companies that will make those cameras?

[Subdivisions]

13. Look upstairs. n/t

[slackmaster]

12. I support this one

It's a good idea.

[JVS]

15. We're supposed to spend $9,250,000 to prevent each of these people from getting run over?

No. Take a look for kids before getting in the car.

[MadHound]

17. Yes, let's make those cameras mobile,

The better to spy on our populace.

1984 is here, and consumers are willingly paying for their chains.

[muriel_volestrangler]

21. Compared with the UK - 5 deaths of children in 7 or 8 years from reversing by an adult

Since 2000, RoSPA has collected press reports of 13 fatal accidents in which a child was killed while in and around a car, but not in a car crash. Five of these deaths occurred when children were left unattended in vehicles – two deaths were due to an electric window, and two deaths were due to children playing with matches left in the vehicle.

There were 8 fatalities on or around driveways, 6 of which occurred when a vehicle was reversing. The most terrible thing about these accidents is that an adult member of the child’s family was usually driving the vehicle. In one case a child managed to start the car, which then reversed over a second child.

http://www.rospa.com/roadsafety/advice/incarsafety/info/children_in_cars.pdf

Perhaps US drivers need to take a bit more care?