Autopilot Risks
A recent accident involving a Tesla Model S with its Autopilot function engaged cost the life of the car’s driver. Since then, there have been calls to disable the function or as least rename it.
We have cautioned many times in these posts about the advance of technology in automobiles. The advances are racing ahead faster than motorists – and perhaps manufacturers – can keep up. We even came to the conclusion that reaching true self drive mode would resolve these issues by taking the car out of the hands of drivers and relieving them of the responsibility.
But the technology has not yet matured and it remains incumbent on motorists to remain alert and engaged. This goes for backing up with the assist of a camera and proximity sensors, changing lanes while a blind spot monitor is active, and certainly will remain the case with an autopilot engaged.
Nissan will reportedly enlist countermeasures to ensure that drivers remain alert as it rolls out its ProPilot system. A torque sensor on the steering column will determine whether a hand is in contact with the steering wheel. Moving from warning lights through beepers to system disengagement, ProPilot will require driver input, period.
We applaud this from a company that has frankly been irresponsible in its advertising of other driver assist systems.
Tesla cites the fact that in order to engage its Autopilot function, the vehicle operator must pass through and accept a warning that the system requires the driver’s attention. It is essentially the equivalent of reading a software license agreement, which we all skim at best, and is not enough.
Airline Pilots Get Confused Too
Pilot confusion with an engaged Autothrottle system was cited as the cause of the crash of Asiana Airlines flight 214 in San Francisco in July of 2013. Pilots with thousands of hours of experience and training still managed to fall on human error. Drivers will never be given training remotely equivalent to that of an airline pilot. Nissan has it right in this case.
To be completely fair, 100 people die on average every day on U.S. roadways and a single fatality after well over one million miles driven on Autopilot has everyone shouting to the rafters.
For the foreseeable future however, autonomous driving system designs need to keep the driver in his or her seat – unlike this early Tesla example from a year ago – as well as engaged in the driving process. It may defeat the spirit and purpose of autonomous operation from the driver’s perspective, but safety is the ultimate goal.
Perhaps as vehicles became more computerized, a second seat could be given the driving responsibility at times.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
On the 
The Smart Key can be undocked with the car in Park and the ignition off. Press the Key to release and pull it out.
Found” is displayed, hold the Smart Key close to and below the auxiliary switch pack to the left of the steering wheel on the dashboard and press the Start / Stop ignition button and the brake pedal as normal. A small depression will be found in the correct location.
If it is adjusted manually, hold the Smart Key fob flat against the underside of the steering column, buttons facing down, as shown. Note the markings, three parallel lines, on the steering column that mark to the correct right spot. The Message Center in your instrument panel will display “Smart Key Recognized”. You will need to hold the key fob in place, and press the Start / Stop ignition button and the brake pedal, all at the same time, to start the vehicle. The electric I-Pace uses these markings as well.
If the steering column adjusts electrically, the process is exactly the same, except that the three parallel lines marking the correct spot are moved to the left side of the steering column. Hold the Smart Key fob against the lines with the buttons facing out, as shown. When the fob is in the right spot, the Message Center in your instrument panel will display “Smart Key Recognized”. Again, the key fob will need to be held in place, and press the Start / Stop ignition button and the brake pedal all at the same time to start the vehicle.
However, Jaguar, beginning with the newest Smart Key in the 2020 XE and the 2021 XF and F-Pace, a new location was introduced. The Smart Key needs to be laid flat against the underside of the dashboard, again below existing switches with the buttons facing out. There is an indent in the dash to help identify the correct spot. The key fob must be help against the while stepping on the brake and pressing the start / stop ignition button.
message to Step on the Brake. Press the brake pedal very, very hard when trying to start the vehicle again to be sure that the release switch behind the pedal is engaged. Or wait a few minutes and try again.
noted that we all have experience with computers crashing, phone apps misbehaving, and there is understandable alarm at the thought of software being in control of our cars.
Marc Favreau
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph's College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
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