BMW, Mobileye in deal to collect map data for self-driving cars – Israel’s Mobileye and German automaker BMW said on Tuesday they signed an agreement to install Mobileye’s data generation technology in BMW cars starting with 2018 models. The deal to crowdsource real-time data using vehicles equipped with Mobileye’s camera-based driver assist technology is critical for enabling autonomous driving through high definition maps aimed at making driving safer and more efficient, the companies said.
Head of U.S. Honda to leave air bags behind, turn to gin and vodka – The U.S. head of Honda is retiring to make gin and vodka with his sons. John Mendel, 62, executive vice president for the Japanese carmaker at American Honda Motor Co. in Torrance, told a group of dealers Monday night that he’s retiring.
Ford wants your new car to pick a song – or tell a joke – Ford wants the self-driving cars of the future to be better listeners and observers: It’s aiming to build vehicles that pick up on the smallest changes in drivers’ vocal inflections and facial expressions, and adapt the drive accordingly. The company is partnering with a German technology university to create advanced in-car microphone and camera systems. Those systems could help vehicles learn what songs a driver likes; adjust the cockpit’s ambient lighting fit the mood or activity — even know when the driver is in need of a good joke.
Porsche, Lexus, Toyota top J.D. Power dependability study – Lexus and Porsche are the auto brands that showed the fewest problems after three years of ownership, though technology troubles continue to drag down dependability ratings overall, a new survey from research firm J.D. Power finds. On average, owners of 2014 models reported 156 issues per 100 cars in the past 12 months, up four from last year’s survey, says J.D. Power in the 2017 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study.
