] AAA, the nation's largest auto club, would support
] requiring black boxes only if protections were in place
] to ensure the data are used just for safety research and
] can't be traced to specific drivers, spokesman Mantill
] Williams said.
]
]
] The highway safety agency says between 65 percent and 90
] percent of 2004 vehicles have some sort of recording
] ability. About 15 percent of vehicles have data
] recorders. Different models collect different amounts of
] data. Some record nothing more than how fast a vehicle
] sped up or slowed down, while others collect a range of
] information about the driver's actions and the condition
] of a vehicle's mechanical systems.

[ I didn't know that many cars did this. Does yours?

Anyway, I think it's a reasonable idea if designed with the right privacy protections. Of course... seems like the black box would be hackable since it probably has to take data from the ECU, which we all know can be replaced and toyed with. -k]

Safety officials recommend requiring `black boxes' for passenger vehicles