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Newer automatic emergency braking systems prevent about twice the number of crashes that older models do but still fail to stop crashes at high speeds, a challenge for automakers preparing to meet a strict new federal standard for the technology.
Model-year 2024 vehicles with automatic emergency braking avoided 100 percentof forward collisions at 35 mph, a much better performance than 2017 and 2018vehicles, which avoided collisions 51percent of the time at that speed, according to research published Oct. 24 by AAA.
"AAA is very pleased to find that automatic emergency braking systems are getting significantly better, and that's a great result for drivers and safety of the road," said Greg Brannon, director of automotive research at AAA.
However, only three out of four test vehicles were able to avoid a collision at 45 mph, and none could avoid a collision at 55 mph.
NHTSA is requiring that all new vehicles be equipped with automatic emergency braking that can meet a high-speed requirement starting in September 2029. Vehicles must avoid a collision automatically with no manual braking for speeds of up to 50 mph. Vehicles must avoid a collision at speeds of up to 62.2 mph when a combination of the automatic emergency brake and the manual brake is engaged.
While AAA tested only full automatic emergency braking without driver intervention, that none of the vehicles could avoid a collision at 55 mph suggests that the industry has a ways to go to meet the new federal standard.
"The new standard doesn't go into place until 2029, so there's a lot of work and development and testing and things that will have to happen between now and then," Brannon said. "The good news is, we've
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There's no way to sugarcoat this: Small and midsize businesses should be scared to death about the consequences of the Inflation Reduction Act. Unless they provide goods and services to the green energy industry, the law's unforeseen consequences could increase their operating expenses in two ways. Here's what to expect — and how to prepare.
SEE MORE Audit-Proof Your Small Business
The Inflation Reduction Act is essentially a climate change law with some health care benefits. While the new legislation doesn't include any direct tax increases on small and midsize businesses, some of its provisions have the potential to raise costs for these companies significantly.
First Reason Why Cost of Business Could Be Going Up
For one, your chances of being audited may be going up. The new bill substantially expands the Internal Revenue Service's budget: More than half of the $80 billion increase in the IRS budget over 10 years will be used to beef up enforcement through new technology and new hires. That means more audits for companies that are the least able to financially manage them. I worry for businesses that gross $5 million or less since they usually don't have excess funds to pay a lawyer $50,000 to fight the IRS if their matter proceeds to court.
In a letter to the Senate, the agency's commissioner said, "These resources are absolutely not about increasing audit scrutiny on small businesses or middle-income Americans." Even so, with the hire of new auditors, it's likely that people with little or
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