Volvo Auto-Brake System Demo...Failed

This remembered me to MIROS 1st crash crash few months ago. The expectations were simple. Hold a press conference to demonstrate how the “Collision Warning with Auto Brake” feature on the Swedish model of the Volvo S60 worked, send it towards a stationary truck at 35k/hr, and use the tremendous new technology to stop the car without human interaction.

The truck was placed. Cameras rolled. The S60 achieved its speed. It just forgot to stop.



Volvo, their tested S60, and their reputation for building safe vehicles took a dent when, to the amused surprise of the onlooking press, the vehicle slammed into the back of the truck it was intended to avoid. The official word from Volvo was that there was human error involved in the preparation of the demonstration.

Amidst chuckles from the crowd, the Volvo MC could only say, “So ladies and gentlemen, we’ve had some kind of mishap in the testing here. I apologize for that. This car actually contains collision avoidance technology obviously not demonstrated in this crash.”

Source: Volvo News

Are Brakes the Real Killers?

KUALA LUMPUR: After years of searching for reasons for the high accident and fatality rate in the country, the authorities said yesterday it could be due to low quality brake pads found in almost all older vehicles.

Road Safety Department director-general Datuk Suret Singh said yesterday replacement brake pads installed by smaller workshops were "of the worst quality in the world".

He said the department was now appealing to Malaysians to change worn-out brake pads only at authorised dealers for car parts.

"Motorists can go to the normal workshops to service their car or for oil change but do not go to these shops to change brake pads.

"The prices may be half the price of original brake pads but we have discovered they are of the worst quality, especially when braking on wet roads," he told the New Straits Times yesterday.

To stop motorists from buying cheap brake pads manufactured locally, he said the authorised dealers had agreed to lower their prices from July next year.


This was because a "massive clean up" of lower quality brake pads would start in eight months' time to stop workshop operators from buying and selling such brake pads, he said, citing the example of motorcycle brake pads sold by local manufacturers to vendors at RM2 each.

"These brake pads are sold to bike owners at RM15 each. These brake pads are truly lethal for them."

Suret said that with the rainy season in full swing, he hoped those driving with cheap brake pads would follow two simple tips to protect their lives and the lives of family members.

First, they should drive with a gap of at least six car-lengths.

Second, they should drive at speeds 20 per cent lower than usual.

"The problem of bad driving in bad weather is compounded by poor brakes, and this could be one of the main reasons we see more accidents during the rainy season."

News Resourse: NST Online

What is Brake Fade and How to Overcome It

1. I'm currently at Sabah, investigating 2 cases, which is one at Lahad Datu (Tipper lorry vs Glue Tanker 4 died) and one at Penampang (Iswara hit roadside barrier 3 died). But this post is made specially to discuss Proton Iswara case which I think very interesting one: brake fade.

2. What is brake fade? Brake fade manifests itself by a spongy feel on the pedal and has little of no braking force at all. But please don't confuse brake fade with bad brakes or a mechanical fault since the brake fade is unexpected event that can occur to all kind of vehicles; new or old. You are more likely to experience brake fade if you do not change the brake fluid frequently.

3. When Will You Experience Brake Fade? Brake fade is usually happening when you are driving downhill. When you use your brakes you are converting the forward momentum of the car into heat. The heat will build up on the disks where it will be dissipated into the air. As a result your brake disk will turn up red and little smoke will be visible. When the brake disk is hot, it losts its sturdy property (softer) and thus, the brake grip lessen.

4. On this case, the distance between the accident site and the peak of the mountenous road stretch is about 14km. The victim car was travelling downhill and during those 14km distance, he would keep pressing his car brake. And 500 metres before the very acute corner of accident site, it was at least 11 degrees slope road. People who are not common with the road stretch would not be prepared with this kind of sudden high slope and acute corner. Thus, my hypothesis is when the victim tried to apply his brake, the brake was already in the state of brake fade and ended up the car went straight hit the roadside barrier. Morever, no sign of any skid marks before the point of impact with the barrier.

5. Above is the picture of passing by car during my investigation on the site. I found out there was a little smoke came out from its front wheel which indicated that the brake was already in brake fade condition. It was not only this car, I found out like every 8 out of 10 passing by vehicles have a little smoke on their wheels.

6. If you watch carefully on the photo above, there was a memorial stone at the point of impact site. According to locals, the case is not the first one, as many similar accidents occured at the very place before and already took so many lives.


7. How to Avoid Brake Fade? To avoid brake fade, do not keep your brakes on frequently when driving downhill, change into a lower gear and let the engine maintain a safe speed of the car. Rather than brake heavily at the very last minute, try to spread your breaking over a longer distance. An emergency stop from 70km/h is sometimes enough to cause brake fade. So jab the brakes quite hard at first and kill most of your forward momentum, the speed you are travelling at will help the disks to dissipate the heat and then reapply the brakes more gently bringing the car to a stop. If you have made heavy use of your brakes always assume that fade will manifest itself for the next few minutes and thus increase your distance from the car behind and keep your speed down a little.

8. Hopefully this post will help you all to understand the hazard of brake fade and teach you to be more careful when driving downhill. Let's share this info to everyone.

Reference