Racing legend Jackie Stewart says people would rather admit to be being bad lovers than bad drivers.
He’s probably right. Americans refuse to admit ineptitude behind the wheel. How else can the phenomenon of “sudden acceleration” be explained? In recent times, drivers frequently allege “unintended acceleration.” They say they were driving normally when their vehicle suddenly raced out of control and caused a crash.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has investigated thousands of such occurrences over the years. Its conclusion: “unintended acceleration” is the result of mistakenly stepping on the gas pedal instead of the brake, or the accelerator pedal being accidentally trapped under a heavy floor mat.
An auto maker should never accuse a customer of being a bad driver. That’s just something Americans do not want to hear, but perhaps new generations of driver assistance systems will preclude the need to tell them.
