Autoblog

Reality shows and the Internet have not created a more ridiculous world, they have only promoted the outrageous things that are already going on. You're a dad in Tennessee who's had 15 brewskies and an unknown quantity of other liquor, your female company is under the influence of something and has a pocket full of pills, and you need to get home. Thankfully there are three kids in the group, and the 10-year-old is probably straight up enough to drive the van. But who knew the kid would think 90 mph was an appropriate cruising speed and then flip the van over? A few police later – after the woman has tried "to swallow as many pills as she could" – the adults got a much more relaxed ride to the pokey and the kids got passport into state care. It's a good thing the proud papa was wearing his lucky beer T-shirt, or things really could have gone wrong. Thanks for the tip, OM617!

[Source: Fox News]

Police in Whitehall, NY cold-busted an inebriated motorist over the Memorial Day weekend for swerving around in the middle of the street and weaving onto area sidewalks. That happened plenty of times over Memorial Day weekend, but what makes this story interesting is the fact that the driver was piloting an electrically powered cooler. Under New York state law, driving any motorized vehicle must be done sans alcohol, and that means anything from cars and boats to motorized coolers falls under the letter of the law. While some would argue that the electric cooler doesn't pose a real threat to pedestrians or other motorists, we'd disagree. This idiot could have caused other drivers to swerve to miss him, and strike others in the process.

While the cops did the right thing by pulling over this cooler-driving clown, we question the need for an ice cozy and cup holder on this vehicle. Of course people are going to use it to drink and scoot! Then again, it seems every new family vehicle is getting ice bins, too, and some of them have like 15 cup holders.

[Source: Switched]

Whenever we read about the latest celebrity who couldn't manage to get themselves home safe after a long night of partying, we wonder why nobody has thought to create a service to drive their drunk asses home. Seems like common sense, doesn't it? Apparently, Sean Combs, a.k.a. P. Diddy, agrees with us. In an effort to "make sure everyone's partying responsibly," Diddy has decided to launch a car service for celebrities. We feel a little silly even reporting on this, but since celebrities are apparently above the good old taxi ride, perhaps the fact that a famous person is behind the effort will be enough to keep the rest of the non-drunk late-night drivers safe, and that is something worth talking about.

[Source: HollyScoop, Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty]

Despite Texans' talk about individual rights, the Lone Star State isn't afraid to take them away when it wants to. Case in point: get pulled over on suspicion of driving under the influence in certain Texas counties, and the police will take your blood whether you like it or not.

It's called the "No Refusal" program, and it's designed to "streamline the blood drawing process" -- something it does quite well. If you're pulled over and accused of driving while intoxicated, the police take you downtown and ask you, on videotape, to take a breathalyzer test. They don't tell you that if you refuse, a nurse -- or sometimes, the police themselves -- will take your blood anyway, getting a warrant from a judge who is on call specifically for the purpose, and using whatever force is required.

Of course, we're all for getting drunk drivers off the roads, and the question of civil liberties vs. safe roads does not have an easy answer. The program will be in force again over New Year's, so everyone, everywhere -- not just in Texas -- have a safe holiday.

[Source: The Newspaper]

As fuel cell technology gains ground, carmakers will find new ways to incorporate it into vehicles beyond mere motive power. In a noteworthy development for social sippers everywhere, Volvo has used it to create a gadget called the Alcoguard, which is a fuel cell breathalyzer.

The use of fuel cells is occasioned by their accuracy. Apparently, European police already use fuel cell breathalyzers, which render more accurate readings because the membranes react only to ethanol and nothing else. The more molecules of ethanol in a potential driver's breath, the higher the electrical current created when they pass through the membrane. In Sweden, the unit is tuned to let the car start at readings of less than 0.2 g/l. Above 0.1 g/l, the car will start, but it lets the driver know that he shouldn't drive.

The Alcoguard can, of course, be calibrated to each country's particular limits. It will be available on the S80, V70, and XC70 models from next year, and will cost 900 euros.

Thanks for the tip, Dave!

[Source: Autoblog Green]

Compared with just a quarter century ago, driving on American roads is roughly twice as safe now as it was back in 1979. This can be attributed to safer cars and roads, new seatbelt laws and DUI crackdowns, but the end result remains that the number of people killed per vehicle-kilometers of travel in 1979 is about double the figure that it is today (20.8 per billion vehicle-kilometers in 1979 versus 9.4 per billion vehicle-kilometers last year, why they used kilometers instead of miles, we don't know).

Sounds like great news, right? It's not if you consider that over the same period, America, which was rated as having the safest roads in the world during the '70s, has since fallen behind countries such as Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, the U.K., the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland, according to research conducted by Leonard Evans for a new book on traffic safety.

The difference in safety ratings between the U.S. and the rest of these countries is the fact that where America has focused on increasing vehicle safety and technology through regulations, other countries have honed in on preventing the causes of accidents via more thorough education and licensing programs as well as tighter law enforcement.

[Source: AutoWeek]

It's a Cinderella story gone all wrong! In Stockholm earlier this week on a quest to become the Scandinavian Masters champion, Oscar-nominated actor Bill Murray got his name in the papers following a run-in with police that involved the actor, alcohol, and a borrowed golf cart.

Murray was in Sweden to play in the aforementioned Scandinavian masters golf tournament, and the hotel where he was staying had a golf cart available on site. Monday night, Murray reportedly took the cart and drove it to a nightspot a mile from the hotel. On his way back later in the evening, the local constabulary noticed the cart being driven erratically and pulled it over to find Murray at the controls. The officer who made the stop asked Murray to blow into a breathalyzer, which he refused. That said, based on reports of the incident, the actor was completely reasonable in how he went about handling the predicament.

[Source: E!]

Click image for photo gallery

You might remember reading about Nissan piloting an in-car breathalyzer system as well as adding a drunk driving message to its cars' nav welcome screens. It turns out, the company is looking at a more comprehensive approach to anti-drunk driving technology integration. The effort has born fruit in the form of a Nissan Fuga (Infiniti M) sedan that is outfitted with several anti-DUI countermeasures. It's just a concept right now, but the approach taken is very interesting.

The Fuga's shifter contains a sensor which measures the amount of alcohol in the driver's hand perspiration. If it is beyond the preset limit, it will immobilize the car and not allow it to be driven. It reinforces the message with a verbal warning from the navigation system. Additional odor sensors in the front seats check for alcohol odor in the air. If any is detected, warnings are issued via the nav system.

Follow the jump for the other features.

[Source: Nissan]

Of course, just like any sane person would be, we at Autoblog are totally against drunk driving. There have been a few technological nannies cropping up of late lately to help combat the problem, including breathalyzers mounted in vehicles that are wired to the ignition circuit. Thise devices won't allow your car to start until you've passed the test. We won't weigh in on whether these are a good idea or not at this time (personal rights or the rights of others?), but we will show you a new talking urinal cake that's designed to remind men to call a cab or get a designated driver if they have had too much to drink.

The urinal cakes are made in New York, and have reportedly been used by advertisers already. We're not sure how we would react if given an advertisement while we were... ahem, relieving ourselves, but a friendly reminder to drive safely may not be the worst advice in the world, huh?

[Source: Yahoo News]

Uh-oh. Little Al is in trouble again. AP is reporting that Al Unser Jr. is under arrest and facing DUI charges after leaving the scene of an accident on the Las Vegas Beltway. He was ID'd as the driver of a car that sideswiped another car around 11 Thursday morning. Unser's car didn't have much damage but the other car hit the center median. Neither driver reported any injuries.

Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Kevin Honea said Unser failed sobriety tests before they took him in. Among the charges Little Al faces are driving under the influence, misdemeanor hit and run, failure to render aid in an accident and failure to report an accident. Junior has had previous problems with alcohol and even went through treatment after the 2002 incident where he allegedly hit his girlfriend in the face.

Thanks for the tip, mavkato!

[Source: AP via Sports Illustrated]