Online NYTimes article regarding a new telematics capability for OnStar vehicles equipped properly. Seems to make high-speed chases a thing of the past...

Taking the Gas Away From the Getaway By MATTHEW L. WALDPublished: October 14, 2007WASHINGTON

GENERAL MOTORS is planning to take the joy out of joy riding, by giving OnStar operators the ability to remotely slow a car to a crawl just as they can now unlock the doors.

In the 2009 model year, G.M. will sell about a million Tahoes, Yukons, Impalas and other vehicles with OnStar service that includes Stolen Vehicle Slowdown, the company said last week.

OnStar operators can already use the on-board G.P.S. and cellular phone to locate a stolen car for the police. The new twist is that when the police believe they have the vehicle in sight, they can contact OnStar, which will activate the vehicle?s flashers to confirm it is the right vehicle. When the officers say the vehicle is in a safe place, OnStar can set off the slow-down.

In a recent demonstration here, the flashers went on and a message appeared on the control panel: ?Engine power is reduced.?

Then OnStar?s narrator, a woman with a no-nonsense tone, announced: ?Attention driver, this vehicle is being slowed down at the request of a law enforcement agency. Safely steer the vehicle to the side of the road and place it in park. Law enforcement will soon arrive.?

She added, ?For your safety, stay in the vehicle.? The vehicle?s steering wheel, brakes and power windows will continue to work.

?We?re basically removing the horsepower from the control of a felon,? said Chet Huber, president of OnStar. According to the company, 300 people are killed annually in police chases, and this has the capacity to reduce that. He said owners could choose to opt out of the slow-down feature.

You don't have speeding cameras over there yet, do you?
In Europe one can be busted for speeding by the automatic camera "cops".

Cars having a "black box" is a fact in these days.
Most cars have them already.

Looking at "Court TV" one can see, that the human factor is not reliable, tech is.

We are already now living with and in the prognosis of Orwell.

no, speeding cameras are not as common here (if at all) as in eu or asia.
but if a car is stolen, i dont think the thief would care if there were speeding cameras or not, he's trying to outrun the cops behind him!

the new onstar feature is interesting...wonder how long it takes for it to be incorprated into bmw assist?

Rudy they are begining to be deployed over here. Just read a couple of months ago about a guy in the Phoenix AZ area who was clocked by camera at 3:00AM in the morning doing well over 120mph...he was late getting home from his girlfriend's house and was on a deserted highway making time. He got busted big time. Red light cameras are very common these days and I'm sure it's only a matter of time before the interstate cameras become more common. Big brother here we come :getlost: