Subaru Watches Drivers’ Eyes
» Posted April 22, 2019 • Resources | Share This Post
The Eagles used to say “You can’t hide your lyin’ eyes.” Subaru is more interested in what people’s seeing holes say about how alert they are behind the wheel.
The Japanese auto maker is rolling out a new safety feature that uses a small camera and facial recognition technology to monitor drivers for signs of fatigue. Subaru plans to make the DriverFocus feature, currently included in 2019 Forrester models, more widely available in the coming years.
“DriverFocus works with Subaru's award-winning EyeSight Driver Assist Technology to reduce the chance of an accident,” the company said in an announcement at last year’s New York International Auto Show. “And for added convenience, DriverFocus can also recognize up to five drivers and remember their presets for seat position, climate, multifunction display and more.”
Driver drowsiness is to blame for some 100,000 crashes across the country each year, according to the National Safety Council. That includes some 5,000 accidents that result in at least one death.
The DriverFocus technology looks to combat that problem by alerting the car’s separate EyeSight feature when a driver shows signs of fatigue. EyeSight is a driver assist program that provides adaptive cruise control and lane departure warnings.
Of course, some folks are a little uncertain about having a live camera looking inside their cars every time they get behind the wheel. The Wall Street Journal’s Dan Neil calls that “spying.”
Fear the Lemon
New technology like DriverFocus offers important opportunities to help people more safely get from Point A to Point B. But that’s only if it actually works. It seems like every week, auto makers are alerting owners about cars being recalled over safety issues.
Subaru, for example, recently recalled 1.3 million vehicles because of a problem the company said could cause cars’ brake lights to not properly illuminate.
California car buyers and lessors have some important protections under the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act. The California Lemon Law requires car manufacturers to make certain repairs to vehicles while they’re still under warranty. If those repairs aren’t successful, the manufacturer has to take the car back and reimburse the owner/lessor or replace the vehicle. It’s up to the owner or lessor to decide between the two options.
The law also forces the manufacturer to pick up any of your legal costs related to enforcing these rights.
How Our California Lemon Law Attorneys Can Help You
Are you a California car owner with a lemon? It’s important that you seek the advice and counsel an experienced lawyer. The California Lemon Law attorneys at the Bickel Law Firm have represented hundreds of clients in defective vehicle cases across the state. Our lawyers work aggressively to resolve these cases for the people that we represent. We do not charge upfront fees in most cases.
Our offices are conveniently located in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco. Call us at (888) 800-1983 or contact us online to speak with an attorney.
