The current situation in vehicle technology has produced a wide range of new systems or has changed the way in which most of the classic vehicle systems work. The action of these new systems is changing the definition of what a roadworthy vehicle is and should therefore also change the way in which roadworthiness is ensured after a period of use. Some systems (such as frontal airbags or emission control systems) are used when the vehicle is being tested in order to pass the homologation limits, and there is no idea of what the homologation test result could be in case of a complete malfunction of the considered system. Almost all vehicle systems are internally checked by their diagnostic routines, but it is not clear how, in the event of malfunction, the driver would receive this information. While some systems have their own malfunction indication lamp on the panel, some others may only activate a general warning on the cluster and some of them simply activate an internal warning which is stored in the ECU without providing information to the driver. The figures presented as “Necessity of inspection” have evaluated which systems could offer more benefits if their malfunction is avoided, taking into account the problems related to this malfunction, the number of vehicles using this system and the current diagnosis method. Of course it is more important to evaluate these figures in a qualitative rather than a quantitative way. From this point of view it is clear that some systems can have a high influence on the roadworthy condition of a vehicle and the way in which these systems are checked some years after the vehicle is manufactured should be clear and uniform. Some of the characteristics related to these new systems, such as the possibility of manipulation or repair capabilities, should also be taken into account when planning a complete system evaluation. A complete analysis of these characteristics is not essential for this report, so simplifications have been made, however this system is still considered a valid approach. This report has studied new vehicle systems and has tried to offer a tool to clarify how a future roadworthiness enforcement method should evaluate the challenges related to those new systems. Nevertheless, it is also clear that facing these new challenges should not be incompatible with those enforcement methods prepared to detect the typical vehicle malfunctions (such as an unbalanced suspension system or an inefficient brake system). (Author/publisher) For the final report and other Workpackages of the AUTOFORE project see http://cita.weborigin.be/AUTOFORE%5FStudy/map.htm
Abstract