BMW develops car that can drive itself

For years experts have been fascinated about developing a vehicle that can drive itself. We’ve all seen Herbie and the Batmobile on our cinema screens but BMW has taken it to the next level by developing two cars that can drive themselves.

This exciting pair of autonomous 5 Series vehicles are capable of driving themselves along a motorway with the use of 12 in-built sensors around the car. These sensors provide information to the mainframe in the boot of the vehicle, sending it along the road using a highly-advanced GPS system and an upgraded version of BMW’s cruise control and lane marking detection systems.

The vehicle was tested on-road, with a driver remaining in charge before joining and after exiting the motorway due to legislation for driving a prototype. The car travels with pin-point accuracy, correcting itself on its own whilst using the GPS system to react to changes in the road surface and surrounding traffic.

If you were thinking of looking at prices for this autonomous 5 Series, hold your horses – the car is a long way from finished and it’s almost certain to never reach production anyway. The vehicle is being used as an extensive test for future driving aids that will be put to good use in future BMW customer cars.

Anything that can improve the safety of motorists at the wheel should be looked upon as a positive, with BMW also looking at Congestion Assists to drive in heavy traffic and an Emergency Stop Assist for detecting a sudden decline in a driver’s health.

However, in instances when drivers are unable to avoid an accident the importance of an efficient and effective way of transporting salvage vehicles away from the scene cannot be underestimated, helping to avoid further road disturbances.

ASM’s vehicle transport service provides salvage car transporters with the latest technologies to enable the safe and environmentally friendly recovery of all end-of-life, damaged and stolen-recovered vehicles.

Satnav drivers losing their sense of direction at the wheel

A scientist from the University of Dundee has revealed that UK motorists are becoming too reliant on satnav systems and as a result are losing their sense of direction at the wheel.

Dr Rosamund Langston, a lecturer in behavioural neuroscience, believes the constant use of satnav devices has created a ‘Hansel and Gretel generation’ of drivers who were simply lost without one.

Dr Langston said: “We seem to have some innate directional awareness which is ‘hard wired’ into our brains from birth.

“But we also found that another significant part of the brain’s ability to find its way around comes from our knack of memorising experiences from the places we have been previously.”

Plotting a route on a road atlas used to be the common way to find your way from A to B. But satnavs and other electronic in-car devices are not allowing drivers to think for themselves, taking away their ‘caveman’ ability to work out for themselves where they are.

Dr Langston added: “For instance, if you start a new job and you take time aside the week before to plan the route, drive it and try to remember it, then you’re going to be better equipped to do it unaided.

“If you’ve drive it ten times just following the flashing arrow on a satnav, you’re probably going to get lost half way there on your own.”

Disorientation is just one of a number of reasons motorists unintentionally cause accidents on the UK’s motorways. At ASM Auto Recycling we boast a great number of salvage cars for sale. These are vehicles recovered from the scenes of accidents but remain in good enough condition to be restored to roadworthy standards.

UK’s first mass-produced electric car now on sale

The nation’s green motoring experts have high hopes as the UK distributes its first mass-produced electric car to dealerships nationwide.

While many motorists have previously been put off by the idea of electric-powered vehicles due to their poor designs, irritating battery life and extortionate price tags, the Nissan Leaf could be the answer for families across the country.

The Nissan Leaf has been compared to a petrol Ford Focus in terms of performance, although it is driven at only a fraction of the greenhouse CO2 emissions and has been available to purchase since the end of March.

Over 600 motorists have been on a waiting list for the Leaf’s unveiling. Interested parties can claim a £5,000 Government grant towards the cost of the £30,990 vehicle while owners will also be exempt from road tax and congestion charges.

It is thought a fully-charged Nissan Leaf will last up to 110 miles, and Nissan calculates that the cost of fully charging its car battery will cost roughly £2 in electricity. Therefore, switching to an electric car could save motorists up to £1,500 a year in running costs.

Andrew Close, European manager for powertrain forecasts at HIS Global Insight, said: “It might be the first year people notice electric cars driving around – normal people rather than G-Wiz owners.

“But 2011 will not see any breakthrough in volume, though it will be a considerable jump from before. 2011 is way too early, £5,000 or not – the vehicles are expensive, constrained in supply and there are still too many good [conventional car] alternatives.”

These conventional car alternatives include purchasing reliable used cars and damage-repairable vehicles at an online salvage auction. At ASM Auto Recycling our salvage auction includes a range of cars, vans and bikes for sale that can be obtained more than 50 per cent cheaper than the same model bought from a showroom – once repaired!

One in three motorists believe maintenance checks are ‘not necessary’

A third of the nation’s motorists believe that it is not necessary to carry out basic maintenance checks on their vehicle on a regular basis, a Sainsbury’s car insurance survey said.

As many as 21 per cent of motorists do not deem monthly vehicle checks important, amounting to 7.2 million UK motorists that hit Britain’s highways on a daily basis.

In the current financial climate and the expensive nature of vehicle repairs it is disconcerting that so many motorists see fit to avoid checking simple issues such as tyre tread depth and water coolant levels.

Ben Tyte, head of Sainsbury’s car insurance, said: “It’s simple, straightforward and requires just a few minutes to carry out basic checks, and doing so will give you peace of mind that your car is in a good condition and safe to be on the road.

“If you are unsure about how to carry out car maintenance checks, then you should consult your driver’s manual if you have one, or maybe speak to a family member.”

Many salvage cars and written off cars collected by ASM Auto Recycling are likely to have been involved in an accident or severely damaged due to a lack of attention to maintenance issues such as poor tyre tread and engine oil levels.

By driving without regular maintenance checks you are seriously endangering yourself, your vehicle and other road users.

At ASM we currently stock over 2,500 vehicles made up of damaged-repairable cars, salvage cars and scrap cars from car accidents and old age.

Auto recycling is a necessity to handle the volume of damaged-repairable and end-of-life vehicles that require collection, storage and vehicle dismantling in an environmentally-friendly fashion in accordance with the new European ELV Directive.