Backseat Driver

Buying the safest car for your family shouldn’t be up for debate.Yet for decades, car safety advocates, manufacturers, and lawmakers in the United States have clashed over whether to make automobiles safer. All sides armed themselves with data in the hopes of winning the great car safety debates. In this way, crash statistics and the analysts who studied them made history. But data were always in the backseat, merely supporting different points of view. That is, until now.With car safety, it’s the value we place on every human life that counts.Automobile safety expert Dr. Norma Faris Hubele delivers a lively discussion of the role data play in protecting you and your family on the road. You’ll gain a greater appreciation for how:A World War I pilot’s near-death experience birthed the U.S. car safety movementData from real car crashes helped create the first vehicle safety standardsA shift toward fuel-efficient cars affected fatality risk in the 1970s–1980s versus nowVehicle size has changed, and the problems that creates for you and others sharing the roadCar safety rating systems, even when limited, empower consumers and motivate manufacturersFederal regulators decide whether to issue a safety recall on your vehicleData’s role is evolving with the advent of driver-assist and self-driving technologiesFurther information can be found on the book's website: www.TheAutoProfessor.com/book [US only].

Norma Faris Hubele, PhD has served over 30 years as a professor, consumer advocate, and automotive safety expert. She was the first director of strategic initiatives at the Fulton School of Engineering at Arizona State University, where she is now a Professor Emerita. An expert witness in over 120 car safety cases, Dr. Hubele has educated the courts about when statistics can or cannot inform decisions. She is a co-author of a widely used textbook, Engineering Statistics. Dr. Hubele is founder and CEO of TheAutoProfessor.com, a free website for new car safety ratings and information.