AD #3527 – BMW Expects Big Boost from EVs; Distracted Driving Underestimated; VW Reveals Sub 25,000 Euro EV Concept

March 16th, 2023 at 12:06pm

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Runtime: 10:16

0:00 BMW Expects Big Boost from EVs
1:17 Germany in Danger of Missing Climate Targets
2:46 VW Reveals Sub 25,000 Euro EV Concept
3:58 Audi Tests 1st PPE EV
4:49 Audi Offers Exclusive EV in the U.S.
6:24 IAM Union Goes After Nissan U.S. Workers
7:16 Impact of Distracted Driving Underestimated
8:36 Tesla Installing Next-Gen Chargers

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17 Comments to “AD #3527 – BMW Expects Big Boost from EVs; Distracted Driving Underestimated; VW Reveals Sub 25,000 Euro EV Concept”

  1. Lambo2015 Says:

    On distracted driving I really hate when groups challenge the data with comments like, “the data collected is out of date and hasn’t kept up with advancements in technology”. Thats not very specific and explains nothing. However, I would agree that distracted driving has to be closer to 25% if not more. Like anyone who is involved in an accident is going to tell an officer they were on their phone. Like go ahead and write me another ticket officer. So of course, the data is skewed.

  2. Albemarle Says:

    Good to see the Audi performing cold weather testing with snow packed into the grill. They drive like I do; no damage no foul. Let her rip (assuming the Audi self identifies as a female, of course).

  3. ChuckGrenci Says:

    I’ll be bold and say that distracted driving accounts for over 95 percent of accidents. Other than mechanical failure, unavoidable objects in the road and some of what I can’t think of, it’s driver error, as in, distraction.

  4. GM Veteran Says:

    I saw a headline this morning that said “dozens” of workers at the Nissan plant would be voting to unionize, or not. Now I understand what that meant. Thanks Autoline!

  5. GM Veteran Says:

    I would not be surprised if the new generation of Tesla charger is meant to be capable of recharging their Semi. It would be compelling for companies to know that if they buy a Tesla Semi, they can recharge it in numerous locations spread around Europe, once more of this generation of stations are installed that is.

  6. XA351GT Says:

    So how many millions did they spend on a study to tell us what we already know ? Which is distracted driving is a major problem. The more connected everything gets the worse it’ll be . Does anyone with even 1/2 a brain think that these massive screen glued to the dashboard won’t be a even bigger problem ?Is it really that hard to figure that out?

  7. Lambo2015 Says:

    5 The Semi and Cybertruck could both benefit by the new charger. I wonder if Tesla has a flatnose cab over Semi for Europe. That seems to be more popular there and would make sense.

  8. MERKUR DRIVER Says:

    The VW model starts at $25,000 euro which is currently $26,500 USD. The 2023 Chevrolet Bolt starts at $26,500 USD and goes 259 miles instead of 280 of the VW. Seems to me that Chevrolet has already beaten both Tesla and VW to the affordable new EV category.

  9. Roger T Says:

    #8 – Agreed. The VW looks really nice, too. I think it’s be great to have such offerings in the US, although I wouldn’t feel safe driving a car the size of Bolt or the VW here in TX, where every other car is bigger than a church van, or about the size of a Tokyo apartment.

  10. merv Says:

    some very nice scenery in that Germany segment

  11. Kit Gerhart Says:

    I just listened to AAH. It was interesting, with talk about efficiency of Tesla, etc. An unbelievable thing, though, was that Sandy Munro thought cars always had 12v electrical systems, and didn’t know they had 6v systems until the early-mid 1950s. The guy is 74 years old and didn’t know that. He must not have been into cars as a kid.

  12. MJB Says:

    #3, #6, Agreed! Though I’d say it might be closer to 70%.

    The question is, what is the definition of ‘distracted’?

    Would a crash resulting from someone looking away from the road long enough to check their rearview mirror fall under ‘distraction’? How about someone being so deep in thought that they almost miss a freeway exit, then in a last-ditch effort to make it cause a collision? I don’t think any law officer would classify these as ‘distracted’, even though they probably qualify.

    What it all boils down to is being able to manage the distractions. There is no one-size fits all approach to this simply because some people can walk and chew gum better than others. That’s why there are tons of folk who’ve been using their phones while driving and never had so much as a single close call on the road in 25 years worth of driving. Yet others get to be part of these dodgy statistics we are discussing today.

  13. Kit Gerhart Says:

    In the 1960′s, a driver was distracted by the act of lighting a cigarette, and tore up the underside of his almost new Tbunderbird when he ran off the road and hit the neighbor’s mail box on a 4 inch steel pipe set in concrete.

  14. Kit Gerhart Says:

    13 Tore up the front and the underside.

  15. Lambo2015 Says:

    I agree that distracted driving can range from looking at the floor for that lost French fry to the obvious cell phone text. I would bet that the majority of distracted driving accidents result in a rear end collision followed by swerving off road or into oncoming traffic. So the auto braking and lane assist features should really help with that. But that’s a band aid to reduce the results, this does not solve the problem. The problem is the distractions and I’m not sure its the manufacturers problem to solve.
    I remember in drivers ed being told that as the operator you are responsible for everyone in your vehicle, and you cannot let a group of friends distract you from the task of driving the car safely. I believe the law agrees and will charge negligent drivers accordingly. It really comes down to having personal responsibility and that’s more of a cultural thing. Much more difficult to fix so in the meantime we will add more band aids to assist those not too concerned with their safety or with the others around them. IMO

  16. Kit Gerhart Says:

    Driving involves personal responsibly, but I think there should be some minimal standards for control uniformity in cars. They have managed to standardize on having the throttle pedal on the right, the brake to its left, and the clutch, if any, to the left of the brake. Then, for years, automatic transmission shifters were standardized with PRNDL. Something happened to that.

    Now, it seems that we need some regulations about windshield wiper controls. Most cars use a stalk on the right side of the steering column, but no uniformity on which way they work. Then, there is Tesla, with no switch at all, expect that you can get a single wipe by pushing the end of the turn signal lever. Beyond that, you need to look to the right and use the touch screen, when you probably should be looking ahead at the road. Why does DOT allow this?

  17. Lambo2015 Says:

    16 That does sound like a horrible design, and I just watched the AAH and Sandy emphasized the cost savings of removing switches. I’m sure Tesla thought they were super innovative to place almost all the controls on the touch screen. Sounds great in theory but yea something like switching on the wipers honking the horn, Radio volume and switching on the high beams needs to be a simple quickly accessible switch and shouldnt be on a touch screen only. Personally I like a dial for HVAC fan too but at least thats not a safety item or something that needs adjustment quickly like the others I mentioned. Maybe Tesla should offer voice activated options to reduce cost.