Automakers want feds to pump the brakes on new emergency braking rules

The Biden administration would like automakers to equip their vehicles with new and improved emergency braking systems that could reduce accidents and save lives. Car manufacturers prefer not to. So, a lobbying group representing the biggest names in automotive is suing to prevent the new rule from taking effect.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation – which represents automakers including Ford, General Motors, Hyundai, Toyota and Volkswagen, among others –he filed a lawsuit with the US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in an attempt to overturn new brake rules passed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) before they are enforced starting in 2029 .

So what exactly is this rule that is so intrusive that these companies simply cannot comply even with four years of lead time?

Well, last year, the US Department of Transportation finalized a new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard that would require all light vehicles including passenger cars, SUVs and pickups to implement automatic emergency braking systems capable of stopping and avoiding contact with other vehicles in front of them at speeds up to at 62 miles per hour. It must also automatically brake “up to 90 mph when a collision with a head-on vehicle is imminent, and up to 45 mph when a pedestrian is detected.” The systems should also be able to detect pedestrians both during the day and at night.

Automakers he protested when the new rules were proposed and presented petitions encouraging the NHTSA to reconsider under the notion that the technology currently available could not meet the standards set by the agency. (The group of motorists already has Trump asked to roll back the rules, too.) NHTSA was unmoved by that plea, basically discussing whose purpose is to force industry to develop and use this technology to meet new requirements.

For what it’s worth, AEB systems are quite effective at reducing accidents. A study by AAA found that 2024 vehicle models equipped with the current version of the safety function were able to avoid 100% of forward collisions when tested at speeds up to 35 mph. NHTSA data suggests that increasing AEB requirements up to 62 mph will save 360 ​​lives a year and prevent more than 24,000 injuries, and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. I believe the technology could lead to “much higher safety gains” that would help avoid more accidents.

Interestingly, the same lobbying group that believes it simply won’t be able to get the technology needed to help vehicles brake automatically at higher speeds. pushed for looser regulations which would allow the deployment of more autonomous vehicles on roads across the country. Innovation first and safety second, apparently.