Automakers call for ‘virtually impossible’ automatic emergency braking rule to be reconsidered

A trade group representing major automakers on Monday called on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to reconsider a new rule issued last spring that requires nearly all new cars and trucks to have advanced automatic emergency braking systems by 2029.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents Ford, General Motors, Stellantis, Toyota and nearly all major automakers, wrote to NHTSA and the leadership of the congressional transportation committees informing them that the group filed a petition that the brake rule automatic emergency to be reconsidered.

TICKER Safety The last AmENdmENT change %
F FORD MOTOR CO. 12.23 +0.39 +3.29%
GM GENERAL MOTORS CO. 48.09 +0.38 +0.80%
STLA STELLANTIS NV 20.70 +0.20 +0.98%
TM TOYOTA MOTOR CORP. 198.98 +5.40 +2.79%

The group argues that the regulation, which was passed in April and would require all cars and trucks to be able to stop and avoid hitting vehicles in front of them while traveling at speeds up to 62 mph, is “virtually impossible with available technology.”

The NHTSA rule came in response to congressional guidance, which included a provision in the 2021 infrastructure law that directed the agency to develop a regulation setting minimum performance standards for automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems. AEB uses sensors such as cameras and radar to detect when a vehicle is close to a collision and automatically brakes if the driver has not.

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A trade group representing major automakers is pushing for the NHTSA to reconsider a rule requiring nearly all new cars and trucks to have advanced automatic emergency braking systems by 2029. (Jonas Walzberg/Photo Alliance via Getty Images)

The trade group said NHTSA’s requirements for higher driving speeds will result in vehicles “automatically applying the brakes much earlier than a typical driver and others on the road would expect” and are likely to result in crashes. the back side.

He also argued that NHTSA “grossly underestimated the necessary and costly hardware and software change required for vehicles to comply with the rule (something that will increase the cost of vehicles to consumers).

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Automakers argued that NHTSA should adopt a different emergency braking standard that is currently in use in Europe. (Silas Stein Alliance/photo via Getty Images)

Alliance for Automotive Innovation CEO John Bozzella said in the letter to Congress that the rule “will require more costly systems that will not improve driver or pedestrian safety.”

“Here’s what I (regrettably) conclude will happen: driving AEB-equipped vehicles in the US under the new NHTSA standard will become unpredictable, erratic, and will frustrate or frustrate drivers,” Bozzella wrote.

“Yes, this rule will make vehicles more expensive, but the real issue isn’t cost—it’s cost/benefit. NHTSA’s action will require more costly systems that won’t improve driver or pedestrian safety, so we are asking the agency to reopen the proceedings and make these necessary corrections,” he added.

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The automatic emergency braking rule will apply to all new cars and trucks starting in 2029. (Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images)

The trade group suggested that NHTSA should instead “adopt a standard already in place in Europe that detects a potential forward collision, provides a driver warning, and automatically activates the braking system to avoid a collision — or mitigate the severity its – through the use of existing crashworthiness systems designed to better protect road users.”

NHTSA said in April that the rule will save at least 360 lives a year and prevent at least 24,000 injuries due to traffic accidents.

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The agency on Monday released its first set of projections for traffic deaths in 2024, which estimated that 8,650 people died in traffic accidents in the first three months of the year – a drop of about 3.2% from the 8,935 deaths estimated in the same period in 2023. This figure marks the eighth consecutive quarterly decline in traffic deaths dating back to the second quarter of 2022.

The rule requires AEB to brake automatically up to 90 mph when a collision with a leading vehicle is imminent and up to 45 mph when a pedestrian is detected.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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