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Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

arstechnica.com

101–110 of 277 posts

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#101
post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Without the speed limiter, I'd guesstimate that any Civic or Accord could brush up against 140 mph. 2.0L 4cyl engines make surprising power nowadays

Most of these cars are not fitted with tires that can safely handle that speed. It would be a dangerous thing to try, even on a track, if the car is not properly prepped beforehand.

Maybe so, but not knowing your speed would be even more dangerous.

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#102

Although 180 km/h looks reasonable, I'm not convinced this kind of solutions is the way to go. Speed limiters are not new and were sold on the idea that are improving the efficiency of the engine, burning the fuel better. To do the same thing in regard to safety however, is a bit humiliating or at least patronizing. People already are required to jump through non-trivial hoops in order to legally get behind the drivi…

I don't think it's fearmongering, especially when you consider that children are allowed to drive (at least here in the US, and with minimal training). This isn't about being a nanny state or keeping folks from driving fast cars (I imagine there will always be cars you can take on the track), it's about keeping everyone on the roads safer. Not one single time in my highway driving life have I encountered a NEED to dr…

Every decision that restricts people is justified with "it's about the health and safety of those around you". It's not a convincing argument when it's used for everything.

Volvo does it so they can use cheaper tires without being liable.

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#103
post #40

I've always wondered why the government sets speed limits but then doesn't enforce them on manufacturers. You can solve 99% of speed "crime" by making it illegal to sell a car that can break the speed limit.

Because it's not their responsibility. Also, they would lose so much money if suddenly no one is getting speeding tickets. There are also groups of car enthusiasts and people that legally race cars and modify cars to squeeze every ounce of performance.

There's also Germany.

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#104

Just out of curiosity, am I the only one that's tried the top speed of every car I've owned? German cars have limiters at 130 or 155mph, and the first time I hit the 130 limiter was a surprise (suddenly lost acceleration, thought I had an engine problem, then realized I just hit the limiter). Surely I'm not the only one? Intended out of real curiosity

I do on the race track. There are a lot of HPDE and other types of driving schools where you can safely test the limits of you and your car's abilities. They are not that expensive. At first, that is ;-)

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#105
If I were automaker I'd consider allowing bursts above the maximum speed limit for a few seconds.

I'm not a fan of limiting (besides for warranty, electronics reasons) and prefer to educate rather than restrict. However, if taking this approach I believe you should consider that some people might drive in the limit and they deserve to be in power of their vehicles regardless.

Imagine if you drive near this software-limited speed and suddenly need to speed up a little bit more to avoid a dangerous situation. You simply can't. This may dangerous specially if you don't have in your mind that your speed is limited by software.

Just allow breaking out of this limit for, say, 5s so your drivers can get out of a dangerous situation instead... And if they try to abuse the system, disappoint them by blocking acceleration.

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#106

I've always wondered why the government sets speed limits but then doesn't enforce them on manufacturers. You can solve 99% of speed "crime" by making it illegal to sell a car that can break the speed limit.

In addition to other arguments the ability to go faster than speed limit is quite useful safety feature (and in many jurisdctions it is perfectly legal to do so, when your intent is to prevent collision)

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#107
post #74

I would love if all cars had a cruise speed mode where I could say, I want the top speed to be 60, and it never goes faster. The difference here is that I would choose this speed, instead of it being set only by the manufacturer. It is also OK if the car had both limits, a manufacturer max and a lower max speed configurable by the driver.

It is offered as "Teen Driver Mode" from multiple manufacturers.

It has features like:

- Maximum speed limiter

- Maximum speed warning

- Audio volume limit

- No seat belt audio mute (i.e. if someone hasn't buckled up, the infotainment unit won't play audio)

- Cannot disable safety features inc.: Stability Control, Traction Control, Daytime Running Lights, Forward Automatic Braking, etc

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many places in the USA, passing a cop while hitting the limiter would result in at least a night in jail, instant driver's license loss, and lots and lots of money. The vast majority of Americans cannot afford even a basic speeding ticket, let alone that kind of expense. So no, you aren't the only one, but certainly experiencing that kind of risk is a massively luxurious thing that the vast majority of people cannot…

what does poor people not being able to afford to get speeding tickets have anything to do with this conversation? should the OP not drive his car in the way that he wants to because of the price of speeding tickets? should people in wyoming, with access to long stretches of highway with little traffic, not be able to drive their vehicles in the way they want to because manhattan doesn't have highways and has lots of…

The only reason to go fast is for thrills. Going fast is dangerous to other people, hence: fuck you, go slower. I don't care what situation you pull from your ass to give a counterexample, 99.99% of people driving over the speed limit by more than 10-20 are driving dangerously.

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#109

Just out of curiosity, am I the only one that's tried the top speed of every car I've owned? German cars have limiters at 130 or 155mph, and the first time I hit the 130 limiter was a surprise (suddenly lost acceleration, thought I had an engine problem, then realized I just hit the limiter). Surely I'm not the only one? Intended out of real curiosity

Many places in the USA, passing a cop while hitting the limiter would result in at least a night in jail, instant driver's license loss, and lots and lots of money. The vast majority of Americans cannot afford even a basic speeding ticket, let alone that kind of expense. So no, you aren't the only one, but certainly experiencing that kind of risk is a massively luxurious thing that the vast majority of people cannot…

Thing is that in Germany there are parts of highways without any speed limits, so OP probably wasn't breaking any laws nor it's "a massively luxurious thing" to speed test your car there (other than owning the car obviously).

Re: Volvo is introducing a 112mph speed limiter to all its new cars

#110
Bummer for track folks.

It's easy to get a new set of rubber that has a speed rating higher than what the factory provided; It's a lot more difficult for a layman to flash out a speed limit.

It's a shame that less and less companies are producing products that take into account that perhaps the potential buyer might actually know better.

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