It's very a very HAL 9000 move, having your vehicle admonish you to not drive after drinking, but that's just what the latest version of Nissan's Carwings navigation system for the Japanese market will do. Between the hours of 5:30 PM and 5:00 AM, the navigation system displays "Do not drive after drinking!" for five seconds after startup. During the day, the navi nanny merely gives the stern suggestion of "Let's continue safe driving today." We're almost expecting that firm "Hmm" at the end, like we used to get from our parochial school principal, but alas, there's even less personality in the Nissan than there was in our old pal Frank. Nissan's making an ongoing commitment to reducing drunk driving and increasing road safety, and this system is part of that effort. Anything that can be done to increase safety and reduce intoxication behind the wheel is a good thing, but we'd rather see a blunter message, something like "I'm sorry Dave, I can't do that."
[Source: Winding Road]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Greg @ Jul 1st 2007 9:03AM
IMO: The cause of today's DWI problem in America is the Nation's Drinking age... which is 21.
If we went back to pre- 1984.... you were allowed to drink at 18. My friends and I all were able to go in to the local store, or hang out in the local bar or go to a club , get lit, then stop at White Castle's... munch out, and go home.
By the time we were all 20... we were bored with the routine, been there, done that.. and we all move'd on with our lives.
Today.... adults have to wait until they are 21 to do what was something that I and others have gotten out of their system a year earlier .... going out, getting drunk, munching out... and sometimes praying to the porcelan god.
Oh... the main point of I want to make is... none of us could really afford a car at 18, 19, etc... we had to go work 1 or 2 jobs, save our money, and then get jobs... and also become adults.
Today... today we have a generation that is working at 18, 19, 20... and not being allowed to go to clubs, bars etc gives them a chance to save money.. then by the time they are 21.. they are driving fast sporty cars... and then being allowed to go to a club.. get drunk... get stupid... and then kill themselves or someone else trying to get home.
I betcha'.... go back to pre 1984... and the overall DWI numbers will retreat... and this whole problem will correct itself.
SloopJohnB @ Jul 1st 2007 9:18AM
I agree. And it will also give Darwinian selection a head start, 18-21, three years, to kill the idiots before they get a chance to breed.
James @ Jul 1st 2007 9:49AM
I'm not sure I agree with all of your logic, but I definitely think America's drinking age is too high and much too strictly enforced.
Just last week, I was with my boss at a bar here in Japan, and when I couldn't decide what to order, my boss told the bartender, "He doesn't have much experience. He's just 19." The drinking age in Japan is 20, but the bartender thought nothing of it.
But anyway, I go to school in Boston, and it's brutal at times trying to find things to do at night off-campus for the under 21 crowd.
paul34 @ Jul 1st 2007 12:29PM
I do agree with your point that the drinking age is too high. Of course, I may be a non-traditional college student, in that, I do *not* believe getting plastered/whatever you want to call it is cool or mature in any way.
However, here's the thing. At 18, let's see what one can do. You can participate and look at pornography. You can be charged as an adult for a crime. You can GO TO WAR AND DIE.
And then the government says you can't drink? It defies logic. How many millions of dollars are spent on enforcing the drinking age? Just last year we had an officer die here (ironically at the hands of another officer... sigh) while they were enforcing the drinking age.
Imagine how many more officers you can get on the street looking for REAL drunk drivers if they weren't so busy arresting 20 year olds for having a beer!
I think, to a large part, the ridiculous alcohol culture we have in this country is due to the even more ridiculous "taboo" notions there are in the government, and more importantly, by the foolish lobbying groups who pay off - oh wait, I mean, "lobby" - our representatives to do as they wish.
Paranoia continues to destroy my country, and there's nothing I can do about it. Very frustrating.
far jr @ Jul 1st 2007 10:41AM
I have no problems with cars being programmed with this type of "information" from the factory. If it is too intrusive for someone, there should be a way to de-program it. Much the same as many door locking systems on some vehicles.
I don't care what the drinking age is, but enforcement is not strict enough. I wouldn't care to be stopped at a checkpoint every saturday night. But of course I'm biased because I was hit head on by a DUI driver who crossed the centerline going 60 mph. He was only 17 and is gone now.
SloopJohnB... Your Darwinian comment is funny but doesn't account for the innocent "others" affected by DUI morons.
c @ Jul 1st 2007 1:36PM
Whats next,cars going to send a message that you excellerated to fast,stopped to fast,turned to sharp...thats coming and it will probably send the info to the local motor vehicle branch and you will get a ticket/fine,remember alot of new cars have a black boxes,and in some cases it was used against the driver in court,yes I am against drinking and driving but people cant stop picking at some sort of cause,they will limit your car at 55 mph 20 sec 0-60 yep..its coming...
Harrison @ Jul 1st 2007 7:07PM
I bet the message is something along the lines of -Let's Not Beer With Driving or You Will Not Have Happy Time!
BirdmanSTX @ Jul 1st 2007 7:38PM
How many drunk people that get into their Nissan are going to be able to make out these words on the Navigation system anyway :)
Christopher Watts @ Jul 2nd 2007 8:47AM
THANK YOU! Somebody finally posted the most sensible question. I don't think Nissan cares about how old the legal drinking age, so we were forced to read through plenty of comments that honestly didn't have anything to do with the story here. This is another moronic electronic invasion of the automobile. It's like when Nissan kept telling us 'your door is ajar..your door is ajar'..and I'm like, "no it isn't, it's a DOOR! Now shut-up and drive me to the nearest liquor store you stupid Maxima."
geo.stewart @ Jul 1st 2007 8:07PM
if the article is about nissan, why the BMW pic? could someone photoshop a HAL9000 onto the front of a 350Z or something? Instead of searching archives for that?
Don @ Jul 2nd 2007 3:20PM
"Hey jackass! You're drunk! Pull over and hail a cab before you pull a Paris Lohan!"
Mike @ Aug 2nd 2007 4:12PM
Raise driving age to 21, lower drinking age to 18.