Big Car Data: Insurance insider warns they want to force you into an EV, ban insurance for petrol cars, and track you

Data wave, Big brother

By Jo Nova

Insurance companies just want to save the world right?

An anonymous insurance insider warns the plan is to force people to buy a digital car, and claims the push is so strong we won’t even be able to get insurance for a combustion engine vehicle. It sounds like a conspiracy theory except that insurers themselves admit Big Data from cars is worth a fortune, and they’ve have been lobbying to get your car data out of the hands of the car manufacturers (purely for your own good), and they’re already “involved in negotiations with the European digitalization and data protection manager”. Righto. Just six weeks ago, a Managing Director of Allianz insurance said he wants to track your car data so he can be “your invisible Guardian Angel.” Creepy, yes?

Wouldn’t you love to have your insurer, the police and the IRS as your back seat drivers?

Imagine a world in which the insurer acts as an invisible guardian angel to drivers, warning them of upcoming weather hazards or accident hotspots to avoid.

Managing Director, Allianz Center for Technology

According to GeoffBuysCars an insider at a large European insurance company has spilled the beans. Being a car lover himself, the insider wants to warn the world that the plans are well advanced. The insurance giants want to collect all your data as you drive so they can adjust the premiums accordingly and instantly. If you drive a bit too fast, it’ll cost you (especially when 20-mile-an-hour-zones spread to everywhere). Your EV will report your offenses to the police and the insurance company. How good with that be?

GeoffBuysCars has translated the insider report “doing the rounds of Europe” into English (hear him below). I’ve searched for any news reports or confirmation and of course, found almost nothing at all about the insider. But a story from Allianz on October 17th suggests he’s right on the money.

It’s a new era of Big Data from cars:

Allianz seem awfully very excited about the tidal wave of big car data that is about to arrive, which they warn was being “monopolized” and “hoarded” (just not by them). Luckily for us, they lobbied the EU and now there’s a new law. Insurers are salivating at the thought of getting their hands on this data, and Big Bankers, and Big Bureaucrats are hardly going to stand in their way are they? They want that data too:

As the world in which we live becomes increasingly digital, every day, more and more data is being generated, monitored and analyzed. It’s also being transferred and monetized, and in some cases, monopolized. The power and insights that can be drawn from data is not lost on corporations and industry players, and while data can improve the competitive position of those with access, the hoarding of it can stifle competition and progress.

Connected vehicles already churn out several terabytes of data per day, but this is nothing compared to what’s to come – an estimated 30 terabytes of data per day by 20251. This is the data equivalent of over 7,000 high-definition movies2! In today’s cars, hundreds of high-tech sensors record everything from driving behavior to fuel consumption and seatbelt status.

…a coalition of parties including insurers, leasing companies, and repair shops have been lobbying the European Commission to intervene when it comes to accessing valuable vehicle data.

Data wave, Big brother

All the terabytes of car data was owned and “hoarded” by the car manufacturers like VW and Volvo but the new EU Data Act “gives that back to the car owner”. Which all sounds good, but wait half a nanosecond for the insurance companies and government agencies who will “offer discounts” to people who sign away their data so they can be spied on legally. Obviously the skiing billionaires at Davos won’t need the discount, so only the riff raff and the poor will be tracked every second of their driving day.

..the new EU Data Act will be a game changer, putting car owners back in the driver’s seat when it comes to who accesses their vehicles’ data. “This move is an important first step in order to enhance data sharing and competition, and for us as insurers to be able to implement new and improved products, claims processes, and effective prevention measures for our customers,” says Christoph Lauterwasser, Managing Director of the Allianz Center for Technology.

“We are about to enter a new era in the world of automotive insurance and solutions, thanks to the power of data from connected cars.”

Imagine being able to sell that data? Say, the insurers give you the discount and collect the bytes and then the tyre guys, the media, the phone companies, the police, the FBI, the shopping centres, the electricity companies and the CCP are happy to pay…

The Government will of course, just offer you a discount on your registration if you agree to be tracked.

“I worked in the IT department of a very large insurer…”

Hear his words. They are already setting this up… it will be connected to police, insurance and national security agencies…. in cooperation with Google and Microsoft.

Since the Luton airport fires, my favourite car commentator is GeoffBuysCars. This is a depressing story, but forewarned is forearmed. Get the word out so we can cut them off at the pass…

UPDATE: The insider letter was posted days later here.


Partial transcript cobbled together —

A mix of the anonymous insider and Geoff’s interjections:

I work in the IT department of a very large renowned insurance company headquartered in Germany. Unfortunately when I tell my circle of friends and relatives about my projects, they dismiss as conspiracy theory. Many people don’t see or understand what will happen to us with this great digitalization Revolution especially the possible dangers or misuse. Here is a small excerpt of the pilot projects that we are working on… the digitized car pilot projects which are already underway in the next 10 years.
It will no longer be possible to insure old cars. You’ll be forced to buy a digital car.
Obviously [says Geoff] we know that electric cars are all connected you can no longer have a simple charger. Your charger has to be smart so the charger knows how much you’re charging …  and I and many others have been saying that it’s a red flag that you have to use an app on your phone to charge your car.]

Big-brother, police, surveillance.… these cars are online 24/7 and in real time in touch with the insurance and traffic authorities for remote surveillance and surveillance of the authorities and that’s no joke. Depending on your driving style the time and the speed the type of driver, your insurance premium will automatically adjust (i.e. if you drive too fast or are too risky you will not only pay a fine to the magistrate but your insurance premium automatically increase). So let’s say you register your car to drive at night you’re a nighttime worker you get a higher premium and your car automatically knows that and feeds it back to the insurance company …

With the coming technological advances, digital ID and digital currency, we will be able to check the liquidity in real time via interfaces with banks and credit institutions as well as the tax circumstances of each customer.
They will have the power to stop any cars carrying “politically exposed people”. What could possibly go wrong?
… also planned and already scheduled as a pilot project for 2025 in cooperation with the Federal Ministry of defense and National Security —  if a vehicle is registered to a politically exposed person and there is a suspected case … this person will no longer be able to start their vehicle. (It’s Minority Report). The car will be deactivated via remote monitoring. This applies to all private vehicles in which the politically exposed person sits,  except officially registered ones, i.e. police cars. They’re talking about an RFID tag on your driving license that would stop you from even getting in anybody else’s car. A powerful RFID chip will be built into these digital ID cards. This enables a close coupling of 10 m but monitoring and localization with an accuracy of approximately 1,000 meters. This is of particular interest to the insurance company because in the event of damage we can more easily locate the people and acts of damage and crimes and those involved…
hang on [says Geoff], so when the insurance companies present this to us — when the powers that be say… so if you have a crash we can find the people that did it and all the Karens will say that sounds like a great idea…

…we’re already involved in negotiations with the European digitalization and data protection managers to also be able to access this  data in more detail. All justified under the name of “Security”.

They already know the flaws of batteries, and plan to use them as an excuse to collect taxes (after everyone has bought one):
In coming years owners of EVs will be forced to pay a battery tax instead of an engine tax, because batteries  pose an increased risk of fire and are harmful to the environment…
Worse, some people will be able to afford safer driving software:
If you pay for better insurance, you’ll get a “higher level of autopilot”.
It would be a shame if you were a political dissident and your software had a bug, eh?

Big Brother Image by Micha|Data flow image by Reto Scheiwiller.|Police squad, Image by James Paramecio.

 

 

 

 

9.9 out of 10 based on 78 ratings

93 comments to Big Car Data: Insurance insider warns they want to force you into an EV, ban insurance for petrol cars, and track you

  • #
  • #
    Glenn

    Hmm..if they try this , I expect the level of civil disobedience will be huge ( at least I hope it will unless we all want to live as serfs ) and these lunatics planning this may have a fight on their hands.

    It appears to be Europe centric, which does not surprise me.

    450

    • #
      Tonyb

      I am in Austria at present and hired a brand new vw polo.

      It is a real bully and keeps shouting at me if I dare to reverse, pass within three feet of an object, insists on highlighting safety zones around me, insists I look around before setting off or before opening a door, something I would do anyway.

      It may be gathering piles of information on my driving technique and notes that I ignore its instructions, that I am too close too something or need to change gear.

      Presumably a younger less experienced driver will be taking more notice of this idiotic cars constant instructions and won’t develop the knowledge to drive by themselves.

      I can just imagine such a vehicle having the capability to correspond in real time with the insurance co and adjust my premiums up every time I ignore this bully.

      540

      • #
        David Maddison

        That sort of thing just encourages drivers not to think for themselves and that’s dangerous.

        360

      • #
        Steve of Cornubia

        I am developing a hatred of the new ‘smartphones on wheels’. I especially mistrust the active autonomous driving ‘aids’ such as radar cruise control, lane-keeping assistance, AEB, etc. My experience and research tells me that they cannot be trusted, especially when fitted to Chinese-made cars (MG etc) and budget brands from Korea (SSangyong) and India (Mahindra, TaTa).

        The cacophony of bleeps, bings and bongs are irritating, to say the least, but these systems are also intrusive when driving and potentially dangerous if they go wrong, and all it takes to make them faulty is the latest software ‘update’ you didn’t ask for when you had it serviced yesterday.

        As I think I have related before, the AEB system on a Nissan I hired in Italy almost killed me when it slammed the anchors on without warning, when I was in the fast lane of a motorway tunnel with a queue of impatient Italians up me chuff. At least back then I was able to disable the AEB system before setting off each time. I’m not sure that’s allowed any more.

        Mind you, an MG I hired in Tasmania had a ‘Wife Alert’ which would BingBongBingBong every time she got into the passenger’s seat. Very smart that.

        220

        • #
          Vicki

          Our hire car in Switzerland a few years ago caused my (very experienced driver) husband total fury when it had convulsions when it encountered new line markings over old ones.

          111

        • #
          Hivemind

          My Kia Sorento has the annoying habit of slamming on the brakes on Parks Way in Canberra (which as everyone knows is a 90 kph zone). It won’t turn off until it’s down to 20 kph, leaving me at considerable risk. I’d turn off the emergency stop feature, but it turns back on every time I start the engine.

          There’s nothing worse than an electronic nanny. I think it is a fault, but the service centre refuses to consider fixing it.

          60

      • #
        Bushkid

        That sounds like a whole lot of distractions from what is the actual task of driving the car.

        At what point does that overload become dangerous, especially for an inexperienced driver?

        110

        • #
          Dennis

          Many years ago while driving from Queensland to Victoria my 4WD diesel developed a cracked cylinder head after the cooling header tank split near Brisbane, so after making arrangements for repairs I hired Mitsubishi 380 V6 and continued the journey.

          How annoying it was that a voice reprimanded me every 30 minutes to take a break, and there was no way to shut it down.

          90

          • #
            Annie

            One of my sisters had an upmarket Renault many years ago. It wouldn’t stop nagging her so she got rid of it.

            90

        • #
          Tonyb

          To answer your question, that overload has surely been reached for an inexperienced driver who would be very distracted unless they found it helpful to follow every instruction and admonition the car handed out.

          Around five years ago we had a car that suddenly started flashing warning signs.We traced it to some sort of radar assist whereby the sensor didn’t like it when it was covered by a leaf or by snow flakes.

          These devices are often highly dangerous and counter productive but I do wonder if newer drivers would just comply to the warnings and instructions being issued by these mobile big brothers.war

          I think it is becoming impossible to switch them off.

          70

  • #
    Geoffrey Williams

    I first heard this from Survival Lilly (German camping lady) about 12 days ago and I have no doubt there is some truth to it . .

    240

  • #
    GlenM

    It will fail. Let’s talk about Jasper.

    80

  • #
    H P

    Even louder everybody …… NO !

    280

  • #
    Neville

    I will never buy a TOXIC, dangerous, unreliable EV so I have nothing to worry about.

    290

    • #
      paul courtney

      Mr. Neville: Nor will I ever buy one, but if we decide to try to keep driving our ice cars (uninsured, unregistered, outlawed, gotta refine fuel yourself), the cops will catch us every time. Because they will drive ICE patrol cars.

      290

    • #
      PeterPetrum

      Not sure if that is true. I have just purchased a new Range Rover Evoque and it is WiFi connected, I believe.

      60

    • #

      Neville, but that’s the point. Unless we push back now, the parasites gradually nudge, force, trick and cajole many into buying an EV, or giving up and catching a bus. They force all of us to pay for the EV infrastructure to make it sort of badly and barely possible, then they start charging more for ICE cars, stopping insurance, and then petrol stations start to go out of business, and suddenly only a minority are willing to drive their beloved ICE cars. Then they stop insurance and ICE car drivers find themselves at risk of losing their home if they meet an idiot on the road. The accident might be all the idiot’s fault, but are you willing to fund your own QC lawyer and hope the judge is not ideologically aligned against stupid rednecks who drive old climate wrecking cars?

      I’m just saying, get the word out now, while most people will be on our side if they see what’s coming. Don’t rely on the mass protests saving the day in ten years time. The parasites know how to divide and conquer.

      Right now only Londoners *really care* about ULEZ, and that only applies to the Londoners who have not already given up their car, bought an EV, moved house, or found a workaround. A year from now, there will be fewer left to protest in London, more will be “subsidized” into acquiescence — just like the solar PV scam in Australia.

      People with billions of dollars pick off the masses with trinkets and discounts and promises of “better” safety, cheaper insurance, cheaper registration, and even goddam better weather.

      Don’t think you’ll be able to keep driving your old car forever, and don’t think they won’t raise the price of new ICE vehicles to make them only something the rich can afford.

      150

  • #
    ExWarmist

    Given there are insufficient materials to build a 1 for 1 EV vehicle replacement fleet, and then charge it from a ‘renewables,’ based electric grid, the only people who can ‘participate,’ in this scheme will be those rich enough to buy an EV car.*

    If they ban IC cars, then the ‘poor,’ members of society simply won’t have cars.

    Individual suburbs will then become, by default, 15 minutes cities for everyone without a car.

    NOTE: *Given that EV market penetration is terrible and likely to stay that way, I think this idea will die on the rocks of reality before it can grow to bear its bitter fruit.

    The question then becomes, what pain must be endured before reality wipes the floor.

    340

    • #
      Frederick Binny

      There’s no doubt the ‘goal’ is to take cars away from the masses.
      The benefits to the ‘important’ people are huge and too many to list.

      40

      • #
        Hanrahan

        I’m not saying you are wrong but WHY? There is a LOT of money made selling/servicing/taxing cars for the plebs.

        30

        • #
          pcourtney

          Mr. Hanrahan: My grasp of their reasoning is, the “wrong” people make money raping the planet, and plebs ought to stop giving them money. With progressives, once they figure what we plebs “ought” to do, it’s a short walk to making us do it.

          00

      • #
        Tonyb

        We plebs are not worthy to drive cars and by getting rid of them we will provide more road space for our beloved elite

        40

    • #
      ozfred

      Given there are insufficient materials to build a 1 for 1 EV vehicle replacement fleet,
      That might be considered a benefit?

      30

  • #
    robert rosicka

    Flat no from me .

    180

  • #
    Penguinite

    Their end game is “no car for you”! Living in a WEF 15-minute city you won’t need one

    200

  • #
    Ronin

    “Wouldn’t you love to have your insurer, the police and the IRS as your back seat drivers?”
    No, I wouldn’t, insurers aren’t exactly a paragon of virtue.

    Besides, where are the clowns going to store all that data and the negative side of all the power to run the massive data center needed.

    180

    • #
      Frederick Binny

      There’s a lot of ‘Scam’ in insurance the average person is way over insured.
      I’ve just brought a new car (American V8 4X4) the dealer was trying to sell me “clean car insurance” Huh?!
      Apparently if your car get dirty, they’ll pay to have it cleaned. I didn’t even bother to look at the fine print – If they’re flogging it they’re makeing money from it.

      20

  • #
    TIP

    They dont need to be EV to do those things – they do however need to be new……so HOW do we get everyone into a new car – climate change TADAA!!

    140

  • #
    MH

    If it’s one thing the last 3 years has taught us is that most people “need to learn the hard way”. Eg 0% carbon will kill 50% of people on the planet reasonably quickly. The remainder except the elite will be a lot worse off and probably begging to eat bugs. Maybe that’s what stirs them into action. I doubt it!

    The road less travelled”, (the title of the book by M Scott Peck) believe it or not, actually has less people on it!

    70

    • #
      Tides of Mudgee

      The so-called “elites” can’t possible have thought their whole great reset through. Their eyes are so firmly on the prize that much has seemingly escaped them. First of all, they are human (I think) and they are going to die. Secondly, who really wants to be in “control” of a world of non-thinking serfs? Thirdly, has it occurred to them that it’s only a matter of time (closer than we think) when the “elites” will start fighting amongst themselves as they try to seize more power from other “elites” and cannibalism within their global group destroys them a la Animal Farm? A quote from George Orwell in the preface to Animal Farm, describing how the idea for the book was born – “ I saw a little boy, perhaps ten years old, driving a huge carthorse along a narrow path, whipping it whenever it tried to turn. It struck me that if only such animals became aware of their strength we should have no power over them, and that men exploit animals in much the same way as the rich exploit the proletariat.”. ToM

      220

  • #
    Gerry, England

    The EU coordinates vehicle regulations for the whole of Europe on behalf of UNECE WP29 to standardise the market and reduce costs. Anything they come up with would apply here in the UK although we have the independence like any non-EU country to change things but large variations from the Euro standard would just make our vehicles more expensive.

    I can see there being a market for devices to defeat some of the possible features and to spoof your GPS location which I understand is far easier than you might think.

    120

    • #
      Dave in the States

      “standardise the market ”

      This is the problem, no market competition. The big banks don’t compete with each other, they cooperate with each other on, for example ESG. Big Insurance uses government regulations to eliminate competitors who could under cut their monopoly. The government mandates people to buy their product at outrageous prices in order to participate in society. Big pharma uses roughly the same business model. Recently, it has become possible to have governments provide guaranteed profits to Big Whatever using other people’s money and/or printed money, actually paid for by poor people through inflation. Everybody bellies up to the trough to get in on it, and then retire.

      What is the antidote to this poison? Free markets, and hands off government.

      190

  • #
    KP

    They will have to talk nicely to the Chinese as they will be the world’s car builders… or maybe the West will insist on local cars to avoid Chinese back doors and the price will just be beyond to bottom 80% of people. Imagine Hammond’s Dodge Ram TRX at $250k being the only vehicle for sale.

    Which suggests some luxury manufacturers will be blessed with Govt permission to build cars and the rest will go broke if they don’t have that 80% of the market to sell to. The insurance industry themselves will crash & burn trying to survive by insuring buses and bicycles.

    80

    • #
      Dennis

      India has a very large motor vehicle manufacturing industry and apart from several India specific brands they manufacture for European brands and others.

      And the economy of India is close to overtaking China.

      30

  • #
    david

    And what happens when the technology in your car decides to stop working like in my Subaru the other day? No fuel tank readings, no GPS, radio, reversing camera,etc.

    I was told to go someone else to fix or replace the problem(s) in the head unit. This is because for Subaru to replace the unit would cost about half the value of the car (more than $10,000).

    110

    • #
      Ross

      Have you tried rebooting the car? After totally immobilising my 2021 Triton, the only way to re-mobilise the vehicle was to remove the +ve terminal from the battery, wait 2 minutes then re-connect. This was the advice from the service techo.

      90

      • #
        wal1957

        This reminded me of the show “the I.T. crowd”.
        When the computer techs answer a phone call and the first thing they say is..”have you tried turning it off and on”.
        It’s a funny show.
        In this tech age performing a shutdown when a problem occurs seems to be one of the first things to try.

        110

        • #
          Annie

          Only yesterday I had trouble with our Bose CD player. Hmmm, turned it off and left it (so no Advent hymns to accompany doing the ironing). Hoping for the best, turned on again later, no probs. It’s been rather unreliable anyway.
          This vehicle scenario is a nightmare. We reckon it’s more environmentally sound to keep our old ice vehicles, keep them well-serviced (costly in itself) and drive sensibly. They should last us out.

          50

      • #
        Froggy

        Ross, same thing happened to me in my ’20 Ranger…..service tech told me to unplug battery…….wait….then reconnect….worked like a dream !!!!Had to do it a couple of times over the period I had it.

        70

  • #
    Tel

    Imagine being able to sell that data? Say, the insurers give you the discount and collect the bytes and then the tyre guys, the media, the phone companies, the police, the FBI, the shopping centres, the electricity companies and the CCP are happy to pay…

    This is nothing new, it’s been around for years.

    https://www.comparethemarket.com.au/car-insurance/telematics-black-box/

    The only difference is that more of this stuff comes already built into the car instead of a plug-in box. Either way, money incentives are what pushes people to sign over their privacy. That said, if you carry a mobile phone then you already have chosen to give away your location data and most of them also spy on you via the audio channel already … does it make a lot of difference if a few more people also invade your privacy?

    120

  • #
    David Maddison

    Looking at the bigger picture this is part of the overall war by the Left/Elites against one of the non-Elites’ few remain personal freedoms – personal mobility, and the right to come and go as you please.

    Due to decades of dumbing-down of the education system and failure to teach about the benefits of Western Civilisation (only hatred) and the rights and freedoms such a civilisation confers on non-Elites, our few remaining rights can be easily removed, as was demonstrated during the covid plandemic. (And strong restrictions still apply in the more woke, more extreme Nanny States such as Australia where certain services personnel still require compulsory vaccination for covid plus you still can’t get an organ transplant unless fully injected with the juice.)

    The Left have always hated personal mobility hence the more the Left regime, the higher the fuel, registration and other motor vehicle taxes.

    Also, one of the reasons the Left love EVs, apart from their restricted range compared to an EV and lack of affordability for ordinary working people, is that EVs are far more amenable to tracing, tracking and remote control than ICE vehicles. Suppose the driver is deemed to be guilty of “thought crime” or “wrongthink”, they could be locked in the car and automatically delivered to the nearest re-education or slave labour camp.

    Also, EVs are just an interim measure prior to total removal of all motorised personal transport, and as also pointed out, there are not sufficient raw materials such as lithium in the world to do a one-to-one replacement with ICE vehicles.

    The ultimate plan is for us (non-Elites) all to live as serfs/slaves in the open air prisons known as “15 Minute cities” where you can supposedly walk or ride a bicycle (if you are lucky) everywhere the Elites think you need to go. I guess if you are too old, infirm or disabled to walk or ride, you will just be compulsorily euthanised (and body parts recycled).

    Remember, the Left aren’t hiding their plans. They are relying on the ignorance of the masses and lack of critical thinking to fail to see what’s really going on. The plandemic proved they can get away with it.

    https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/03/15-minute-city-stickiness/

    The surprising stickiness of the “15-minute city”
    Mar 15, 2022

    https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/12/goodbye-car-ownership-hello-clean-air-this-is-the-future-of-transport/

    Goodbye car ownership, hello clean air: welcome to the future of transport
    Dec 16, 2016

    170

    • #
      David Maddison

      Erratum: In the fourth paragraph, second line, the first instance of EV should read ICE vehicle.

      90

  • #
    Simon

    There is no technological reason why we can’t have accident-free motoring now. But, every vehicle on the road would have to be on the network and communicating with surrounding vehicles. Any changes to road conditions would also have to be updated in real time. Collision detection in modern vehicles is pretty good, they do detect pedestrians walking out in front of vehicles. Completely autonomous self-driving cars will happen, but there is a legacy of dated vehicles that will first have to be replaced.

    034

    • #
      David Maddison

      Collision avoidance and various other safety sub-systems are fine, but as for full autonomy, that should be a feature for the dtiver to select, or not. It might be beneficial for a 1000km drive so you can sit back and relax.

      But some of us like to have the option to be in control of our own lives and our own machinery Simon, something a Leftist/Elitist could never possibly understand and there is little point trying to explain concepts of individual freedom and liberty to such a person.

      280

    • #

      You know that self driving cars are not free of accidents, even deadly.
      NHTSA published near 400 accidents in 10 month, most (273) Teslas.
      https://www.knrlegal.com/car-accident-lawyer/self-driving-car-accident-statistics/

      Autonomous cars – utopia or nightmare?

      1. “Smart” car kills driver
      Williston, Florida, 8 May 2016
      Yesterday a self-driving car killed its driver in a horrifying accident in Williston, Florida. It is
      believed that the car mistook a white lorry for the sky. The car rocketed under the back of the
      lorry, cutting off the top of the car, and then crashed at the side of the road. Joshua Brown, who
      was apparently watching a film at the time in the car, was killed at the scene of the accident.

      150

      • #
        Ronin

        “Joshua Brown, who was apparently watching a film at the time in the car, was killed at the scene of the accident.”

        Ah, Natural Selection, isn’t it great to know it still rules.

        40

      • #
        Ronin

        “It is believed that the car mistook a white lorry for the sky.”

        It shoulda gone to Specsavers.

        70

    • #
      David Maddison

      Also, autonomous driving is only a form of driver assistance. It lets you relax a little but you should still be in potential control of the vehicle.

      It doesn’t mean you can go to sleep. It’s just like an autopilot on a plane. The pilot is still in control and doesn’t go down the back to have a snooze.

      People say the Tesla “autopilot” is misnamed. It isn’t if you understand the nature of aircraft autopilots. They don’t mean “no pilot”. They still mean someone is meant to be in control, but assisted.

      130

  • #
    Ross

    Ahh good, some new conspiracy theories. We need some new ones, because all the old ones have come true.

    220

  • #
    Fran

    What about the power requirements for analyzing terabites of data in real time? Seems the systems required would be like a whole bunch of cryptomines spaced all over the country.

    110

    • #

      Why do you ask, we have windmills and solarpanels, should maybe install some more… 😀

      90

    • #
      David Maddison

      They don’t count CO2 emissions from the data centres use to track, trace and control the non-Elites. In fact they will probably have their very own coal power station because they know you can’t run a large data centre 24/7 on unicorn electrons.

      190

  • #
    Rick

    We’re in for some interesting viewing in the near future. The wheels appear to have well and truly fallen off the EV market. Even car dealers aren’t interested in selling them any more, let alone the makers who are queueing up to shut down their production factories.
    Insurance companies can huff and puff all they like, it is currently a buyer’s market, and the market isn’t buying.
    I sense that the “market” is getting progressively more and more stubborn with every effort to corral us into situations we see as not to our advantage. Bravo!

    230

  • #
    Steve

    How would they get everyone into an EV ?
    Well in the UK Rich Sunak has just reaffirmed the mandatory EV quotas that car manufacturers must meet.
    January 1st, 22% of cars sold must be zero emission (EVs).
    2030, 80% must be EV.
    Failure to meet quotas result in huge fines. (£15,000 per non EV)
    https://dailysceptic.org/2023/12/06/sunak-suffers-major-tory-rebellion-over-net-zero-as-he-relies-on-labour-votes-to-push-through-electric-car-quotas/

    120

  • #
    Bruce

    The rate of the global convergence of assorted totalitarian projects is accelerating.

    Has the culmination point been moved forward?

    It certainly looks that way. Intimations of mortality coming into play?

    Remember: “It is NOT paranoia when someone REALLY is “out to get you”.

    “Paranoia” is defined as an “irrational” fear. A look over global “intentions” indicates that something is “cooking” and the timetable is “tightening”..

    180

  • #
    David Maddison

    The Elites only drive EVs (or are driven) when it’s for virtue signaling purposes.

    When it comes to their own safety and security they drive (or are driven) in ICE vehicles.

    As usual with the Left, it’s “Do as I say, not as I do“.

    https://www.drive.com.au/news/why-the-australian-prime-minister-wont-be-in-an-electric-or-hybrid-car-anytime-soon/

    Why the Australian Prime Minister won’t be in an electric or hybrid car anytime soon

    The newly-elected Prime Minister of Australia has vowed to increase the take-up of electric vehicles. But there are good reasons the PM’s office won’t be able to lead by example for a little while yet.

    Joshua Dowling
    25 May 2022

    Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been obliged to trade his humble Toyota Camry Hybrid for a BMW limousine – even though he has pledged to drive Australian new-car buyers towards electric vehicles.

    The newly elected Prime Minister – whose Toyota Camry Hybrid was last year side-swiped by a Range Rover that had crossed to the wrong side of the road – will not be able to lead by example in the shift to hybrid or electric power for a little while yet.

    The fleet of BMW 7 Series limousines located across Australia for the PM’s use are highly armoured vehicles with underbody bomb protection, on-board oxygen supplies, bulletproof doors and windows, and puncture-proof tyres.

    As a result of all the heavy-duty armour, the weight of the BMW 7 Series limousine climbs from about two tonnes to close to three tonnes.

    High powered petrol or diesel engines are required to shift a vehicle of that weight in an effective and brisk manner should evasive action be needed by the PM’s security drivers and convoy of close personal protection vehicles, all of which have armed officers on board.

    German car makers Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz have factory-backed assembly areas that specialise in hand-built armoured cars that offer various levels of protection. They are not available for the public to buy.

    SEE LINK FOR REST

    And recall the interview I posted here by the pro-freedom Japanese reporter at Davos who interviewed a chauffeur who explained none of the Elites there to discuss the Klimate Krisis were being driven in EVs due to the cold (bad for battrries) and security issues.

    180

  • #
    Jonesy

    Remember that truck fire on the Westgate freeway last week. Brand new EV truck on its first revenue run catches fire and burns to the ground. That resulted in two orders of another 17 trucks with the one manufacturer to be cancelled that morning. A lot of secret squirrel stuff is happening in the background. Some wankers are making a solar farm south of Gundagai to power a truck recharging station at Tarcutta. Gotta build a direct line from the fast start gas fired powersation at Uranquinty to back it all up (Read that as run the bloody thing!) Electric motors are the greatest tractive engineering going but the storage of the electrons is what will keep killing this market. Great idea, too bad it will never work until Dr Fusion is invented for the masses.

    On this article. Insurance..The whiteman’s burden (A skit from the The Goon Show) Instead of a car, the insurance company sells you a worthless policy that costs your entire income forever. And you dont get entertained doing it. A scorcher! whats this snow doing on the beach? Its on holiday!

    160

  • #
    Clem Cadiddlehopper

    This is an interesting development. I can see the cost of already expensive car insurance spiraling out of control if this takes place because of the number of write-offs that will surely eventuate. https://www.carexpert.com.au/car-news/why-electric-vehicles-are-being-written-off-over-minor-battery-damage

    90

  • #
    John Connor II

    I saw this video when it came out, and I’m absolutely NO fan of Geoff buys cars.
    My gut instinct said it was bollox, just a made up prank story, because it reads that way.
    One of many such stories where some “insider” turns whistleblower and spills the beans, just like those youtube ads where some “engineering insider” allegedly gets fired and reveals how power companies are ripping you off, and how you can save $$$ if you buy this device that just plugs into your power point. Covered that one.
    The wording isn’t right, feels off, especially for someone in an IT department. Are IT departments usually privy to executive policy formulation?
    Throw in all the latest terms and fears and you have your story.

    Even without proof, the push to EV’s is real, alcohol interlocks, remote tracking, data logging and remote control are real and have been for many years, just not factory integrated features.
    The elephant in the room though is the timeline. The (attempted but now failing) forced mass EV uptake won’t even come close to manifesting BEFORE 2032, the great global political meltdown date, with far more important non-political events in the next 4 years.
    EVs will be the least of anyone’s worries before even 2030.
    Trillions of dollars to upgrade and repair existing power grid infrastructure globally will be needed and with every government broke, that’s not going to happen.
    The data alone would require 6G bandwidth and yes, 6G is slowly being rolled out, but then there’s the data storage centres, data security protocols and laws, data security (hacking) aspects to factor in.
    There’ll be V2V – vehicle to vehicle communication, V2I – vehicle to infrastructure, and V2X – vehicle to everything forms of communication.
    Internet surfing, OTA vehicle live updates, and no doubt V2G – vehicle to government control centre.
    Even by 2018, over 30% of US vehicles were part of the IoT.
    Modern cars can have up to around 200 different sensors, and the data alone amounts to around 4 TERAbytes per car per day.
    Then there’s the inevitable backlash against car manufacturers integrating such tech & backlash against insurers.
    Let’s go broke together…

    I won’t be worrying about this one iota because other events will swamp it.

    130

    • #
      David of Cooyal in Oz

      ” Are IT departments usually privy to executive policy formulation? ”

      Yes, if the board actually wants the system to be implemented. And they’ve got to fund it. And provide the IT resources to develop it.
      Cheers
      Dave B

      20

  • #
    czechlist

    the wife does a lot of freeway driving and is hooked on the lane departure and collision avoidance system on her civic. Recently, a paint can fell off of a truck she was following and mis-aligned the microwave component under the front valence. $500 for recalibration and the dealer had the car for 8 hours.
    Our auto insurance increased by 25% over the past two years. We have “no fault” insurance here and I am certain most of the increase is due to EVs

    140

  • #
    Spitfire

    I worked for the same insurer a few years ago, and the green ideology was well and truly entrenched in the corporate culture. The company’s intranet was full of globalist prattle and propaganda about unreliables being the future that they’re investing heavily in wind and solar around the globe.

    Wonder how that’s going for them now…

    EVs hadn’t really taken off at the time I was there (2011-14), so there was a bit of pipe-dreaming going on but not nearly at the level I expect it’s going on now.

    120

  • #
    Lance

    Easy solution. Don’t purchase a data connected automobile after 2025, and turn off your mobile phone when driving.

    There are plenty of used vehicles at decent prices and always will be, until 2025. Pick one and Stock up on spare parts.

    I had a Volvo 240 for 25 years. Only sold it because the wife said I needed a car from the current century. Sure it took some work, and spare parts, but it was reliable and not data connected.

    I’ll keep my 2015 Mazda 3 for a few more years. All the benefits and none of the data liabilities. Plenty of spares.

    Throw some sand into those Bureaucratic schemes. See what happens if the auto industry sees an 80% loss of market.

    80

    • #
      John Connor II

      I had a Volvo 240 for 25 years. Only sold it because the wife said I needed a car from the current century.

      There are just some things one should not disclose publicly.😁
      /jab in the ribs

      70

      • #
        Lance

        It was a 1992 240 Station Wagon with 5 Speed manual transmission. Every bushing was replaced with polyurethane, new springs, struts, rotors, brakes, belts, A/C, computers, stainless exhaust, pirelli tires, etc. A ground up rebuild. 54,000 miles on it at purchase and 83,000 miles at sale. Got 25 mpg in town and 31 mpg on highway. No rust, no dents, no damages. Everything was factory perfect.

        I was very proud of that rebuild. So, today, the wife says I need to find a viable 240 to avoid the Govt intrusions.

        Go figure that one out.

        70

      • #
        Hasbeen

        My 1980 Triumph TR7, which I restored as a retirement project is the nicest car to drive I have ever sat in. That includes a number of Ferrari, Brabhams & a few others back in the day.

        50

      • #
        Annie

        They were brilliant cars and kindly don’t jab me in the ribs.

        30

  • #
    John Connor II

    Just in time for white folk xmas, Lego have brought out the EV starter pack.

    https://imgbox.com/fOjVpPF5

    😆

    30

  • #
    STJOHNOFGRAFTON

    BigBrotherAuto can stick their surveilance in their ear. I’ll ride me flamin’ mountain bike. No insurance needed (Yet) and plenty of burned off kJ’s to heat up the atmosphere, trigger the global warmists and make them booby hatch fodder.

    50

  • #
    David Maddison

    Those few freedom-loving people left need to start learning about off-grid comms methods and privacy-oriented phones outside the Goolag, Apple etc. ecosystems. SEE Rob Braxman videos on YouTube.
    https://youtube.com/@robbraxmantech?si=eWQRJ0YlZOy8c8ch

    20

    • #
      John Connor II

      A lot are focussed on LoRa bluetooth so range is a km or 2, so it’ll be off-grid in the city or rural but close neighbours.

      Andy Kirby covers this well.
      https://youtu.be/LmGr1pGJ4sM?si=5Fjj00VMelsOoAKg

      It’ll be a global mega disaster or true SHTF scenario for these to be useful and only for the prepared, and that’s about 0.001% of people.

      20

  • #
    Cynic

    Interesting facts:
    Who of us can disable the communications between car and base?
    Who of us can disable the annoying bullying mentioned above?T
    It’s fine to say you will ignore any incoming bullying, but what if your car stops?
    Already, BMW I think, require a monthly fee to allow them to enable the seat heaters.
    Soon, it will be a monthly fee just for your car to start. (EV or IC!)

    The trouble is, in the back of one’s mind, are the thought’s:
    “What if it is beneficial to me one day?”;
    What if I am in an accident, and my car actually communicates with “someone” and my life is saved?”

    One of the most insidious, dishonest, miserably self centred and genocidal people on the planet, Bill Gates, found this out years ago.
    “If you let me spy on your personal computer, I will be able to see any problems as they arose, and fix them for you thus saving you a lot of money!”
    “I’ll give you Windows11 for free. All you have to do is give me unfettered access to your computer, and I’ll keep it working for you.”
    “You only have to pay for what you use. All you have to do is download Excell when you want to use it, for a small fee each time.”

    Autodesk’s Autocad can no longer be bought. It is by subscription. Some Thousands per year.
    “Ah! But you get the latest version all the time!”
    As everyone knows, the latest version merely fixes some bugs creates new bugs, and is entirely different from the previous version. Hence, you have to learn the new version.

    Bill gates wanted to do all this many, many years ago, but the hardware wasn’t there to do it. Now it is!

    Like most things nowadays, we weren’t smart enough to see it coming. We weren’t caring enough to resist it. We, even years ago, had little choice.

    I think the horse might have bolted. And, if the shenanigans in the U.S. at present is any guide, resist and you will be jailed or killed.

    70

    • #
      John Connor II

      Who has the technical skills to alter automotive firmware behaviour?
      Not your dealer, not your alternate repairer, not the pc guy expert, not the average hacker, or the backyard ECM “tuner” (who should avoided like the plague).
      We need to move in the realms of experienced automotive code developers with disassembly/decompilation experience, so someone from the industry with the inclination and tools.
      Realistically, virtually no-one.
      Of course there are simpler “solutions”, which I won’t go into for obvious reasons.
      Autocad? The “w” word. 😎

      30

  • #
    Gatone Rowine

    Very recently I looked at any alternatives to my current MV insurance. As I am > 60+ (and the bloody ad was on TV incessantly), so I checked out one of the “seniors” insurances. It was more expensive than my current one, but wait…unless you choose “Pay as you drive” option. They would instal a “monitoring device” that will report your driving (behaviour, I assume) and your premiums will be adjusted accordingly. This article, though quite good in one respect, is way behind. They are smarter and they are already forming consumer behaviour by using very simple incentives, a lot of older people think they are safe drivers. They will sign up. It’s a foot in the door for insurance companies to claim during their next actuaries annual lovefest that such and such percentage of drivers is already using this wonderful technology…you follow the drift? And it does not matter if you drive an older car, insurance companies still have a wonderful new technology to make your insurance cheaper. Just sign up!

    30

  • #
    Gatone Rowine

    P.S. It was possible to find Actuaries annual reports online before, they gave a very good view of what to expect. After all, they have some amazing resources. Recently, I noticed, they disappeared from open domains and became “member only”, meaning you have to be a Guild member to access them. Disappointing! I used to read them to gauge possible developments. If anybody has access to these actuaries reports, please share a link or two. They are quite revealing.

    40

  • #

    […] A report has been making the rounds about this and it ought not to be dismissed as “conspiracy” because it is an elaborating fact. People are being pushed into EVs. Vehicles that aren’t EVs are being pushed off the market. The government has been pushing the embedding of electronica in all new vehicles that is marketed as “assistance” technology – and “technology” that will prevent “impaired” drivers from driving. By which is meant drivers whose “performance” is outside of allowable parameters. […]

    40

    • #
      David Maddison

      Excellent article. I have no doubt its true as the general objective of the Left is to limit or eliminate all personal freedoms for non-Elites.

      (The link is where the name normally goes.)

      10

  • #
    Steve

    Obviously we are all going to stand in long queues for trains and buses that may or may not turn up whilst the ‘elites’ drive past in their EVs, paid in large part by us, the great unwashed. [Snip]

    20

  • #
  • #
    JG McNeil

    No need to worry, W.E.F plus U.N. are all in crash mode, all is connected.The sad part is there will be the big crash, war , pandemic etc, all over by 2027, then we rejig the corrupt Politicians, less political parties etc, less to vote for. Truth will be to the fore, as Rome fell the West is in that mode. Never forget what has been will be, as above so below. Asians understand cycles, the West never heard of them, stuck in linear mode.

    10

  • #

    […] A report has been making the rounds about this and it ought not to be dismissed as “conspiracy” because it is an elaborating fact. People are being pushed into EVs. Vehicles that aren’t EVs are being pushed off the market. The government has been pushing the embedding of electronica in all new vehicles that is marketed as “assistance” technology – and “technology” that will prevent “impaired” drivers from driving. By which is meant drivers whose “performance” is outside of allowable parameters. […]

    10

  • #
    David Maddison

    I tried to post a link to this website on YouTube in response to one of Tony Heller’s latest videos about data tampering at NASA/NOAA to cool the past and warm the present and my comment was about how “our” very own BoM was doing the same and the AI bot at YT deleted it.

    Here is the link that was deemed too terrifying and dangerous to post.

    https://joannenova.com.au/2014/08/the-heat-is-on-bureau-of-meteorology-altering-climate-figures-the-australian/

    I reposted my comment but just used the words of the title of the article which people can use Goolag to find

    00

  • #
    David Maddison

    Rudyard Kipling quote:

    The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. To be your own man is hard business. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.

    20

  • #
  • #
    Russ Wood

    Years ago in the 1970’s, I borrowed a (UK) library book, entitled “In Place Of Cars”. The answer that the author wanted was ‘flexible’ bus services. Now, the ‘answer’ is NO CARS!
    Before retirement, I worked in the aircraft industry, which meant, inter alia, that I lived wherever there were flats to let, and worked at an airfield outside of town. So mostly, I NEEDED a car to get to and from work. One place I worked, I could get from my home to work by public transport – but it took THREE BUSES to do so. My last place – there was ONE bus a day specifically to the aircraft factory – miss that and I was dependent upon generous motorists for lifts. There was only one job where I could walk to work, but unfortunately there was a river in the way! That was OK, until the river flooded and I ended up paddling! So thankfully, I no longer have to get to work, and am spared THOSE problems. However, there’s a 10 minute walk from my retirement home to the nearest supermarket, and the road has a 1:12 slope, so it’s not fun!

    00