AAA Study Reveals Which Cars Are Most Distracting

 

This should come as no big surprise to anyone with a new car. As technology continues to invade automobile dashboards, the rate of distracted driving accidents increases. I'm not exactly sure why but apparently, some vehicles are less safe than others.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2017/10/05/aaa-dis...

cars with toys

at one time the radio was the only distraction , now there's the phone ,gps ,camera's and other gadget's each taking a fraction of your time from watching the road and at 60-80 mph that's a lot of road even in town at 25-35-45 mph between kids wearing dark cloths crossing a road or animals at dusk or dawn hours people crossing the road in odd places. perhaps if auto manufactures would only allow a phone to beep to alert you to an incoming call and only function if the motor is off that could save lives and the gps was voice only. driving distractions are like running around with a loaded gun with your finger on the trigger some one will get hurt sooner or later !

People

Passengers in your car are probably the most distracting.

77 Ford pickup

Way too much technology and distractions in new vehicles,not to mention the fact you need an entertaining degree just to change the battery or headlight bulb ( if they're even changeable!)
I'm just getting old and grumpy I guess...I miss hand crank windows and 8track tapes.

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Nuvi 2595LMT, Nuvi 40, GPSMAP 62s, TomTom One XL -Change what you can, manage what you can't.

8 track tapes. A whole

8 track tapes. A whole generation exists because of backseats and 8 track tapes.

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Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

"Auto"correctness

phranc wrote:

8 track tapes. A whole generation exists because of backseats and 8 track tapes.

LOL... just noticed that more technology intervened and anticipated what I was trying to say in my earlier post..."entertaining degree"..but fitting to your reply Frank!

Damn autocorrect..

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Nuvi 2595LMT, Nuvi 40, GPSMAP 62s, TomTom One XL -Change what you can, manage what you can't.

Yep

jale wrote:

Passengers in your car are probably the most distracting.

All of the studies I have seen about distracted driving and cell phones show that it is the conversation that is he most distracting. By extension talking to anyone in your car with you is the most distracting of all.

--
Drivesmart 66, Nuvi 2595LMT (Died), Nuvi 1490T (Died), Nuvi 260 (Died), GPSMAP 195

Does Not Account....

rocknicehunter wrote:
jale wrote:

Passengers in your car are probably the most distracting.

All of the studies I have seen about distracted driving and cell phones show that it is the conversation that is he most distracting. By extension talking to anyone in your car with you is the most distracting of all.

Passengers in vehicles have been around since Henry Ford's time. While they are definitely distracting, they do not account for the rise of distracted driving incidents in recent years.

awareness

While teenagers definitely drive worse when sharing the car with teenage passengers, the studies I've seen suggest that we older folk adjust to the idea that our passenger understands that we need to withdraw our attention when the road calls. But the same social consideration does not apply to the person on the other end of a phone conversation. Unambiguously the data show that talking to somebody on the phone while you're driving messes up your results much more than having a passenger.

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personal GPS user since 1992

Most people cannot multitask

Most people cannot multitask if one of the tasks is carrying on a conversation. The conversation becomes the dominant factor in the brain and the other task is secondary.

I won't even go into the scenario of texting while driving. Have you ever seen someone walking and texting and just step out into the crosswalk with out looking? I have many times. Must be God's way of thinning the gene pool.

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I never get lost, but I do explore new territory every now and then.

texting while driving ....

KenSny wrote:

Most people cannot multitask if one of the tasks is carrying on a conversation. The conversation becomes the dominant factor in the brain and the other task is secondary.

I won't even go into the scenario of texting while driving. Have you ever seen someone walking and texting and just step out into the crosswalk with out looking? I have many times. Must be God's way of thinning the gene pool.

Most people think they are the best driver on the road, that texting while driving is not a problem. I'm here to tell you they're wrong. I drive a truck for a living I sit up high enough to see them texting away as they go by, I also see them drifting in and out of their lane, or slowing down and then speeding up, used to be the signs of a drunk driver ahead of you, now it's more likely someone texting.

Oh my favorite was the woman who had the big red stop sign sticker that said no texting while driving on the rear of her ever slowing and speeding up car, yep, when I was finally yot go by her, texting away she was. Wish I had taken a video of that.

--
. 2 Garmin DriveSmart 61 LMT-S, Nuvi 2689, 2 Nuvi 2460, Zumo 550, Zumo 450, Uniden R3 radar detector with GPS built in, includes RLC info. Uconnect 430N Garmin based, built into my Jeep. .

older drivers

Nothing is worse behind the wheel of a new smart car than an old geezer that can't multitask, as we get older not only our reaction time diminish but our short term memory does as well, how many times do you find yourself at a corner having to look in both directions multiple times to assure yourself that no vehicle is coming? I know sometimes it happens to me.

--
Garmin 38 - Magellan Gold - Garmin Yellow eTrex - Nuvi 260 - Nuvi 2460LMT - Google Nexus 7 - Toyota Entune NAV

Swivel Head

flaco wrote:

Nothing is worse behind the wheel of a new smart car than an old geezer that can't multitask, as we get older not only our reaction time diminish but our short term memory does as well, how many times do you find yourself at a corner having to look in both directions multiple times to assure yourself that no vehicle is coming? I know sometimes it happens to me.

I ALWAYS look in both directions several times at intersections... even if I have a green light. It's not age, just self-preservation.

Several years ago, I watched as two cars in front of me drove through an intersection on a green light and then a third vehicle got broad-sided by a car going through the red light! The driver claimed that he didn't see the red light because of the sun. The glare may have caused some problems, but I always wondered how he missed the two cars that drove through ahead of the one he hit.

Fortunately there were no injuries, but the incident reinforced the need to not take anything for granted.

STOP

Daniel I meant to say stopped at a two way Stop Sign and having to look multiple times both ways as if not sure the brain is storing the information the eyes relayed just a fraction of a second ago, in my younger year my reaction was quicker so there was no need for a swivel head.

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Garmin 38 - Magellan Gold - Garmin Yellow eTrex - Nuvi 260 - Nuvi 2460LMT - Google Nexus 7 - Toyota Entune NAV

.

bdhsfz6 wrote:
rocknicehunter wrote:
jale wrote:

Passengers in your car are probably the most distracting.

All of the studies I have seen about distracted driving and cell phones show that it is the conversation that is he most distracting. By extension talking to anyone in your car with you is the most distracting of all.

Passengers in vehicles have been around since Henry Ford's time. While they are definitely distracting, they do not account for the rise of distracted driving incidents in recent years.

If Henry was around today, he might say "You can have any passengers you want, as long as they are silent."

Very Interesting.....

Thanks for posting.

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RKF (Brookeville, MD) Garmin Nuvi 660, 360 & Street Pilot

interesting

I would have guessed Subaru and Volvo as both those makes have made their brands upon this well what other word can I use "fake" sense of safety and gadgetry....

Usually these lists are far from scientific, i.e. neither reliable nor valid, but that doesn't mean there is not anything to them either.

My wife always laughs when she sees a Volvo or Subaru with those camera devices facing forward. It would be interesting to find a single documented case where they actually did anything...

I wonder if there has been a study

It would be interesting to know if vehicles that have the ability to program the nav system (or do other infotainment programming) while in motion - for example with a defeat device - have a higher accident rate than vehicles where the programming mode is locked out.

Self preservation?

flaco wrote:

Nothing is worse behind the wheel of a new smart car than an old geezer that can't multitask, as we get older not only our reaction time diminish but our short term memory does as well, how many times do you find yourself at a corner having to look in both directions multiple times to assure yourself that no vehicle is coming? I know sometimes it happens to me.

It's imperative now-a-days to look in both directions, and multiple times to avoid anybody that's trying to multitask while heading in your direction at the same time - age has nothing to do with self-preservation! wink

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Freedom isn't free...thank you veterans! Heard about the tests to detect PANCREATIC CANCER? There aren't any! In Memoriam: #77 NYPD-SCA/Seattle Mike/Joe S./Vinny D./RTC!

Think that's bad .

Try driving in my small Mexican town where I spend the winter. Every intersection can be a challenge. They'll come out from a side street not looking. Kids on small motorcycles on the phone or texting.
That's why the cruces on the highways are increasing. rolleyes

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Nuvi 2797LMT, DriveSmart 50 LMT-HD, Using Windows 10. DashCam A108C with GPS.

dashboard video

Drove friend's Lexus and Toyota hybrids. Hybrid cars like to display animated video of charging or discharging state of car while driving.

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Steve - 2 Nuvi 3597

Unlike a PNG.. Or Cell phone

you don't seem to have any means to turn the stupid Info-tainment center off.

Some of these cars, if you put the car in reverse or turn right, insist n displyaing what's behind the car (some with multiple angles) or what's on the right hand side of the car.

If there's a nav system in the car, it doesn't seem to have the ability to disable it's from being displayed.

Some have audio / radio / music systems in on these stupid things and you trying to navigate between AM / FM / ?M / and other sources is a real pain in the tail, along with volume controls being included on the glass (and again you can't turn the damn thing off).

Some have gone so far as to include the climate control systems in these miserable things.

Ok, some have eh ability to allow verbal commands to control them but they don't seem to be all that effective at sorting out what's being requested...

Some have the ability to display emails or txt's that arrive and some can if asked to car read them to you... but if you want / need to reply, there's no way in hell to reply verbally even if your phone can do it...

Oh... the next component is if you want / need to change the brightness level of the dash controls, you can't do that unless you get into the system or vehicle and try to control them there.. but you must stop, put the stupid car in park and let the engine run to do this... it's absolutely idiotic... and the engineers doing this haven't a single clue about man-machine interfaces and what makes reasonable sense.

Every time the car starts up, much like the PNG's (not the cell phones) come up saying things like, "operator is responsible" blah blah blah...

I'm more than convinced some really sharp attorney will find a way to take one or more of these vehicle manufactures on with all the introduced nonsense that's more of a distraction and hindrance than a benefit. It's going to happen, and that "sharp" attorney will win... of course trying to get the settlement from a manufacture may be a long battle...

We're rapidly becoming our own worst distractions on the road

--
Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

Front facing cameras

Your wife must have missed the news stories about how there was an increase of front facing cameras for the increase of dimwits in Russia and several former occupied countries having people jumping in front of cars and then suing the driver for negligence. Cameras will show the facts.
Front facing cameras are a requirement when renting a car in these countries.
Companies selling cars in these countries can not determine where some of their cars will be sold so they place the cameras in all of their cars.
These cameras can determine how guilty one is in a crash. I have one.

Me too

kurzemnieks wrote:

Your wife must have missed the news stories about how there was an increase of front facing cameras for the increase of dimwits in Russia and several former occupied countries having people jumping in front of cars and then suing the driver for negligence. Cameras will show the facts.
Front facing cameras are a requirement when renting a car in these countries.
Companies selling cars in these countries can not determine where some of their cars will be sold so they place the cameras in all of their cars.
These cameras can determine how guilty one is in a crash. I have one.

I also have dashcam and a dedicated GPS connected to it giving the precise location as well as the speed I am traveling at and have been for quite sometime on a 32GB memo card.

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Nuvi 2797LMT, DriveSmart 50 LMT-HD, Using Windows 10. DashCam A108C with GPS.

Mine has it

LeapFroggie wrote:

It would be interesting to know if vehicles that have the ability to program the nav system (or do other infotainment programming) while in motion - for example with a defeat device - have a higher accident rate than vehicles where the programming mode is locked out.

Toyota Highlander 2016 does not allow for any manual searching or programming while vehicle is in motion, I can verbally search a POI or make a phone call but no typing is allowed, I assume others are the same.

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Garmin 38 - Magellan Gold - Garmin Yellow eTrex - Nuvi 260 - Nuvi 2460LMT - Google Nexus 7 - Toyota Entune NAV

The conversation

bdhsfz6 wrote:
rocknicehunter wrote:
jale wrote:

Passengers in your car are probably the most distracting.

All of the studies I have seen about distracted driving and cell phones show that it is the conversation that is he most distracting. By extension talking to anyone in your car with you is the most distracting of all.

Passengers in vehicles have been around since Henry Ford's time. While they are definitely distracting, they do not account for the rise of distracted driving incidents in recent years.

I'm not arguing that there aren't more distractions today. I'm just commenting that the conversation is what these studies find are highly distracting mentally. The distraction doesn't end when the conversation does. It lasts for quite a long time after it ends as your brain processes the information. That includes conversations you have with someone just before you get in your car and drive away.

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Drivesmart 66, Nuvi 2595LMT (Died), Nuvi 1490T (Died), Nuvi 260 (Died), GPSMAP 195