Auto Safety Lab : Safety of Japanese cars

No matter where you go most number of used cars from Japan. It doesn’t even matter if it’s a developed country like the U.S., India which is a fast developing country, or Russia which has been struggling over the years. Cars from Japan are reliable, easy to maintain, spare parts are relatively inexpensive and available, and the technology is updated.

The Ann Arbor Township has begun a study on auto safety. The University of Michigan and its Transportation Research Institute supported by the $14.9 million contract from the federal government and a $50 million investment from Toyota Technical Center will study how technology can help improve car performance.

The idea of the study is to find a way for cars to communicate with each other or with the driver through technology. How it plans to do this is not revealed although the research institute will be hiring at least 30 special workers and 3,000 drivers to work with them. The 30 specialists include software engineers, scientists, and tech installation experts. The general plan is to develop a software that would recognize potential danger and relay this to the driver.

The investment from Toyota will be drawn over a period of 5 years and is part of the massive campaign to end recalls on cars. In 2010, Toyota had to recall millions of its SUVs because of acceleration problems. This isn’t the first time a car maker voluntarily decides to recall its products. However, Toyota dreams of the 2010 incident as being the last time it will ever happen.

GPS devices will be installed in the cars of the 3,000 volunteer drivers. The result of this study when it comes out next year will determine whether or not technology will be required in every car as a safety prerequisite.

Over the years, car safety has been a major concern. There have been multiple improvements from seat belts, air bags, brakes, and also in additional reinforcement on the car’s body. Used cars are required to have the necessary updates and anyone planning to buy a used car should check that the safety features are in good condition.