Nine years after an employee warned of a flaw in certain ignition switches, General Motors began recalling millions of vehicles to repair the defect. Nine years after the first recall for Takata airbags that can shower vehicle occupants with deadly shrapnel, the company still hasn?t replaced all the defective components, and some drivers remain at risk. With that sort of track record, why should the public trust these and other carmakers to deliver on promises to revolutionize road safety through the introduction of self-driving vehicles"
That?s one question a prominent consumer advocacy group raises in a new report, which suggests that motorists should treat the ambitious declarations of autonomous-vehicle developers with heavy doses of skepticism. Consumer Watchdog, a California-based nonprofit, says that the risks of autonomous vehicles are as great as the potential rewards. The organization urges regulators to formulate mandatory rules to safeguard the riding public, rather than allow the industry to adhere to its own voluntary standards. ?The unprecedented number of recalls in recent years suggests a dangerously cavalier attitude toward public safety on the part of vehicle manufacturers,? its authors wrote in their report, entitled Self-Driving Vehicles: The Threat to Consumers.
?It raises serious concerns as to whether manufacturers are presently, or will be, capable of building safe robot cars and trucks, which will far exceed the complexity and sophistication...