Will the ME Have AEB?

[John]

Will the 2020 Corvette come standard with automatic emergency braking (AEB)?

While I have earlier posted that I thought AEB would be standard on the ME, the following article casts serious doubts that AEB would be standard on every 2020 mid engine Corvette.

It certainly however, makes a powerful case that having it on your car, even having the lesser safety “notifications” system, is working extremely well to reduce both front and rear end collisions.

Please at least read the bolder sentences below.

So based on this article, might instead the entry 2020 ME 1LT version, to keep the MSRP down, only have a notification system, and as we all have thought, that it is available in the upper trims at a considerable price increase over C7 2LT and 3 LT trims.

Might therefore the 1LT come with a notification system, yet AEB be an extra that could be added to the 2LT interior package, and the AEB system might be standard in a 3LT interior that would increase to a $12,000 option package?

Or will it always be a standard alone, separately-orderable option?

IIHS Study Says Automatic Emergency Braking Drastically Reduces Crashes In GM Vehicles BY SEAN SZYMKOWSK, NOV 14, 2018
A new study from the IIHS published Tuesday showed automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning drastically reduce crashes in General Motors vehicles. Yet, it’s rather expensive to equip new GM cars, trucks and SUVs with the technology.

According to the study, GM vehicles equipped with automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning saw a 43 percent reduction in front-to-rear crashes of all severities. Front-to-rear crashes with injuries also dropped by a very significant 64 percent. The independent safety body looked at GM vehicles from the Chevrolet, Buick and GMC brands from the 2013-2015 model years to conduct the research.



The IIHS obtained the vehicles VINs and then collected crash data from 23 states’ police departments for the vehicles equipped with the technology, and ones that did not.

GM vehicles equipped with just forward collision warning still saw a dip in crashes, too. In all, the warning system reduced all front-to-rear crashes by 17 percent, and the same crashes with injuries dropped by 30 percent.

GM is increasingly isolated when it comes to standardizing active safety technology. A prime example is the 2019 Chevrolet Blazer, which goes on sale in January. The mid-size crossover SUV does not include the technology as standard. In fact, it’s not even offered on mid-level trims.



Buyers will need to select the Blazer Premier trim to even unlock the availability. The Premier model starts at $43,895 but does not include active safety features as standard equipment. Instead, a buyer will then need to select the Driver Confidence II Package, which costs an extra $2,165. That puts the Blazer’s price tag at $46,060 for a front-wheel drive model and $48,960 for AWD models to gain automatic emergency braking.

Rival Ford will include automatic emergency braking on all vehicles as standard equipment as part of its Co-Pilot 360 active safety tech bundle. Critically, it will be standard on the 2019 Ford Edge, one of the Blazer’s main rivals. GM in 2016 announced support to make automatic emergency braking a standard feature by 2022.

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2018/11/...n-gm-vehicles/

[JB]

I thought the government was requiring this feature...should be standard with a lock out feature for the track.

[John]

Really good point JB. Thanks for that reminder, for I forgot that it is coming for sure in 2022 (the Fed implementation date). Maybe all the wiring and similar is installed in every 2020 and 2021 Corvette, but they leave out the “hardware components” for those two entry years unless a specific interior or option Is selected.

[Frenzy36]

I hope it won't have AEB, my Cadillac ATS scares the S___ out of me sometimes as it seems to notice the car turning in front of you which you are aware of but the car only sees you going too fast and the flashing red led's show up on the window with this loud beeping and your totally just cruising in relaxed mode. I also hate the lane assist as it will rip the wheel out of your hand if you forget to put on your turn signal, even though there are no cars next to you, while your changing lanes on the highway. They can keep it in my book.
I don't see how they come up with those figures as it activates when there is absolutely no need.

[Shadow]

I have some of these safety measures in my DD, and while sometimes they alert when not necessary, if they were to save me one wreck, to me, worth it. Mine in my driver are disable-able. I like that. But I have never turned them off.

As John sometimes says, “to each, their own.”

[meyerweb]

My wife's Honda has a flashing warning when it thinks you might hit the car in front because you're not slowing down fast enough. The technology will have to be a LOT better before I'd want it hitting the brakes for me. The alert flashes in situations where I'm totally in control, and not remotely worried about hitting something, far to often for my liking. In some of those situations I'd b afraid of getting hit from behind when I suddenly slow down.

[Boomer]

I like those features on my XTSvsport. I feel I should be subject to a seat rumble if I fail to use my turn signal even if I don't believe there are other cars around. There have been many occasions where I have been confused when running/jogging on the side of roads and a car approaches and I'm not sure why its slowing down and then it makes a turn in front of me with no signal, no other cars around. I almost got hit the other day when a car turned and I wasn't expecting it to do so, no signal. Pedestrians look for those turn signals too. Not using turn signals is a pet peeve of mine.

While I've gotten used to these safety features, I would be comfortable without them and without paying for them. I've never had the collision warning come on when I didn't think it was warranted even though I would not have crashed. I don't like it when cars quickly come right up on my tail when I'm making a turn. They may not notice the pedestrian that just stepped off the sidewalk in front of me causing me to emergency brake.

If AEB is not required till 2022, I hope I can save the cost of having it on my 2020 C8.

[John]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gtnecxnH5W0

[Boomer]

Will it be "required" in 2022? Looks like its just an agreement, not regulation. From a 2016 NHTSA release:

"McLEAN, Va. — The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced today a historic commitment by 20 automakers representing more than 99 percent of the U.S. auto market to make automatic emergency braking a standard feature on virtually all new cars no later than NHTSA's 2022 reporting year, which begins Sept. 1, 2022."

On Jan 25, 2017 NHTSA denied a petition to initiate rulemaking that would require AEB. It said: "A rulemaking can be commenced later if it proves necessary." So for now, it doesn't appear NHTSA will actually require AEB.

[John]

Thanks Boomer for clarifying. GM was one of the 20 automakers who signed that agreement, and while done under Mary Barra’s watch, my expectation we will see it no later than 2022. Thank you.

[Boomer]

GM was one of the 20 automakers who signed that agreement, and while done under Mary Barra’s watch, my expectation we will see it no later than 2022.

Probably. I wonder if any of the 20 OEMs would reevaluate if there is no FMVSS requirement.

[meyerweb]

The agreement does say "most cars." I would imagine if any are left out it would be relatively low volume cars, like the Corvette. And September 2022 would be the 2023 model year for most cars. I suspect manufacturers will phase it in, beginning with the market segments most sensitive to safety features: family sedans, minivans and SUVs. Some vehicles in those segments have it already.

[tooold2race]

First I think it should be 'standard' on everything with wheels that is still driver controlled! Look around you in traffic. Almost everyone has a Starbucks in one hand and a cell phone in the other (in spite of most cars now coming equipped with Bluetooth). Someone or something needs to be watching the road!

My second comment..... our Ferrari has an automatic emergency brake. When you take the ignition key out (yeah, I know that's pretty rare today), the electronic brake automatically sets. When you start the car and put it in gear, it automatically releases. Besides being a convenience, it eliminates an extra handle, switch or petal and the related hardware. That's something important, I would think, when you look at how limited the real estate is in the cockpit of a Corvette.

[AbqVic]

Call me a nut, but I generally don’t like being forced to have, and pay for devices that attempt to compensate for stupidity and incompetence we all see in other drivers.

Further, I don’t trust any studies conducted by the Insurance Institute. They are biased toward pushing legislation designed to reduce insurance company payouts.

Slightly off topic, but the TV ads that glorify a car that can parallel park itself, while the driver sits there with a stupid smile on her face, drive me insane! How can you glorify incompetence?

[Bikerjulio]

These nanny systems are not infallible. In the Golf R, the lane assist feature has been misled by tar strips for instance. It's a total PITA IMO and it's turned off in my car. The collision avoidance cannot be turned off, but it too is fallible. There are reports of confused or malfunctioning systems randomly slamming on the brakes. In England there's a video of a VW whose collision avoidance system cannot handle twisting country lanes with hedges, rendering the car almost undrivable.