❗Let's close the gap: We still need your help to raise $40,000 by April 1. Donate now

Cars may be smarter, but not smart enough for car washes

Sally Herships Oct 27, 2016
HTML EMBED:
COPY
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Cars may be smarter, but not smart enough for car washes

Sally Herships Oct 27, 2016
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Cars are getting smarter, but not yet smart enough to go through a car wash. Some new cars with semi-autonomous features, like obstacle-detecting sensors and automatic braking systems, are being activated by the brushes and curtains inside a car wash, immobilizing the vehicle or even causing it to veer off the rails and collide with another car. What makes the problem worse is that every fancy new car has a different way of disabling the new features — usually buried deep within the vehicle manual. Who will be responsible for fixing the problem — car manufacturers or car wash owners?

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.