The U.S. government’s highway safety agency is investigating complaints that the automatic emergency braking on big Freightliner semis can stop the trucks unexpectedly for no apparent reason.
It’s at least the third recent investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into glitches with the technology, which has the potential to save lives because it can make vehicles stop or slow down for stopped or slowed traffic.
The probe covers about a quarter-million trucks made by Daimler from the 2017 through 2022 model years.
The agency says in documents posted on its website Tuesday that it has 18 complaints from owners alleging that brakes on Freightliner Cascadia trucks can come on without an obstacle in the road.
The reports say the trucks can brake without warning or any input from the driver. The braking ranges from partial application with little loss of speed to full application, bringing the trucks to a complete stop on the road.
The agency says it tested one of the trucks and it stopped for a steel trench plate on the road. Daimler Trucks said the trench plate does not represent real-world driving.
NHTSA says it will determine whether the braking problem is an unreasonable risk to safety.
The complaints don’t cite any crashes or injuries due to the problem.
In a statement Tuesday, Daimler Trucks said it’s committed to developing life-saving technology such as automatic emergency braking. “The company shares the same mission as NHTSA to reduce fatal crashes and serious injuries, and looks forward to continued collaboration with the agency to review AEB technology and the upcoming regulation and test procedures that are being developed for the industry by NHTSA,” the statement said.
In February of 2022, NHTSA began investigating complaints that Teslas operating on the automaker’s partially automated driving systems can suddenly stop on roadways for no apparent reason. NHTSA says more than 750 Tesla owners have complained of false braking.
During the same month, the agency opened an investigation of more than 1.7 million Hondas for a similar problem. At the time NHTSA said it had 278 complaints about the problem.
The U.S. government is in the process of adopting regulations to require automatic emergency braking on all new passenger vehicles and heavy trucks.
(AP)
Follow us on:
Albania plans a one-year TikTok ban from January after a schoolboy’s death sparks concerns over…
A suspect accused of killing five people by driving into a crowded Christmas market in…
A US Navy F/A-18 Hornet was mistakenly shot down over the Red Sea by the…
NNPC has reduced petrol ex-depot price to N899 per litre, sparking competition with Dangote Refinery…
President Tinubu has urged enforcement of strict crowd control measures after deadly stampedes in Anambra,…
In a move to alleviate the burden of rising transportation costs following the removal of…
View Comments
O7O 4540 6674 With Us On Purchase.CAMRY TINY LIGHT #450,000
CAMRY BIG DADDY #500,000
CAMRY MUZZLE #850,000
CAMRY SPIDER #950,000
TOYOTA COROLLA #700, 000
TOYOTA RAV4 #750,000
TOYOTA AVALON #650,000
TOYOTA VENZA #1,8MILLION
TOYOTA PICNIC #400,000
TOYOTA HILUX #1,2MILLION
TOYOTA TUNDRA #1,5MILLION
TOYOTA TACOMA #2MILLION
TOYOTA LAND CRUISER PRADO 3M
TOYOTA PRADO 2,5MILLION
ACURA MDX #950,000
ACURA TL #1MILLION
ACURA ZDX #1,5MILLION
NISSAN MURANO #800,000
NISSAN PATHFINDER #900,000
NISSAN XTERA #950,000
NISSAN ARMADA #4,5MILLION
NISSAN PICANTO #400,000
NISSAN ALMERA #450,000
NISSAN SENTRA #700,000
HONDA PILOT #850,000
HONDA ODDYSEY #500,000
HONDA ELEMENT #2,5MILLION
HONDA ACCORD #450,000
HONDA BABY BOY #400,000
HONDA EVIL SPIRIT #450,000
RANGE ROVER SPORT #4,8M
LAND ROVER SPORT #2,5MILLION
LAND ROVER DISCOVERY #3M
LEXUS RX300 #700,000
LEXUS RX330 #800,000
LEXUS RX350 #1,2M
LEXUS ES300 #800,000
LEXUS ES330 #900,000
LEXUS ES350 #1MILLION
LEXUS GX460 #1,5M
LEXUS GX470 #1,8M
LEXUS LX570 #2,8M
MERCEDES C200 #1,5M
MERCEDES C230 #1,8M
MERCEDES C250 #2M
MERCEDES C300 2,5M
MERCEDES 4MATIC 2,8M
MERCEDES GLK 3M
O7O 4540 6674 }