The Aftermarket Is the Key to Preventing Fatal Accidents
MARCH 23, 2021 // JEFF VARICK
Brandmotion is a company on a mission. We want to see every vehicle on the road equipped with lifesaving collision-avoidance technology. Not just new vehicles, but every vehicle. Cars, commercial trucks, fleet vans, new vehicles, old ones — even classics. There are 280 million vehicles on the road right now, and only 15 million new vehicles are built each year. That means 95 percent of the cars and trucks on the road are missing the latest safety technology. Nobody really focuses on that 95 percent, but only the 15 million new vehicles. If we’re going to make every car on the road safer, we need to focus on retrofitting those other 95% of vehicles — today. https://youtu.be/9A7zS7hluXE
Why Retrofit Safety Products?
Brandmotion focuses on the aftermarket. Most people think of the aftermarket as spoilers and lift kits and wheels and floor mats. But we can use the aftermarket to save lives. No one has really talked about that before. It isn’t something that leaders in Washington or policy makers are considering. But not only is it a valid strategy, it also means you don’t have to wait until all of today’s vehicles are retired to see lives saved. Several years ago, one study showed that if all the vehicles on the road had the same safety technology the newest vehicles are equipped with, we could save 10,000 lives a year. We’re losing 40,000 lives every year in the United States due to car crashes. That means we could cut road deaths by 25 percent overnight, simply by equipping every car on the road with the latest safety technologies. The key to doing that is through the aftermarket, because the vehicles are already on the road. If you’re a consumer or a fleet manager, you don’t have to buy a new vehicle. The average age of a car is getting longer all the time — it’s up to 12 years now. That’s a long time to wait for the latest safety technology. What if you could have that technology in your current vehicle, today? And in many cases, you can get the technology sooner than auto manufacturers can provide it. Because it can take years to develop and integrate at the OEM level, while we can bring it to market faster. https://youtu.be/ScIH_Uj7snI
Retrofit Doesn’t Mean Inferior
Saving lives doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice appearance or integration quality. At Brandmotion, we care deeply about how our products integrate into your vehicle. We don’t want our customers to be able to tell that it’s any different from the factory model. Our goal is nothing less than integrating products as if they came off the dealer’s lot. You won’t find suction cups or Velcro® on any of our technology. It’s integrated so seamlessly that if you didn’t know it’s an aftermarket product, you’d never know it’s an aftermarket product. https://youtu.be/IMwc-4t4Dws
Saving Lives Together
Anything that can help keep a driver safe shouldn’t be reserved only for new vehicles. It should be for everyone. We believe so strongly in that mission that we’re helping other suppliers to introduce their automotive safety technologies to OEMs. And, we’re on a mission to educate the broad public about the availability of life saving technology through the Vision Zero Automotive Network, which we founded. When you have a new vehicle technology or ADAS solution to take to market, it isn’t enough to prove that it works. Your automotive idea has to be developed to OEM standards and it has to prove effective to its target market. As developers of integrated automotive solutions we know how to help. Whether you’re a two-person team or an automotive supplier, we can help you demonstrate your new technology, prove and expand revenue possibilities and find markets.
What’s Next in Automotive Safety Technology
Since 2009, we’ve focused on cameras and sensors, which give drivers additional information to be more aware of their environment and avoid collisions. More recently, we’ve adapted radar blindspot technology, which was once thought to be unpromising as an aftermarket product. Now we’re seeing smart technology being applied to cameras and sensors, so they can process what they’re seeing. Dash cams aren’t just recording the road ahead, but are also measuring the rate at which you’re approaching the car in front of you. They can tell if you’re drifting out of your lane. They can also monitor drivers and alert them if they become distracted or start falling asleep. We’re even seeing opportunities to connect those smart cameras and sensors into a network where vehicles are talking to each other. It’s an incredibly exciting opportunity for the aftermarket. There’s so much new technology making its way to cars and trucks, it boggles the mind. It’s an exciting time to be in the automotive safety aftermarket. We’re excited to be able to adapt that technology and make it available to every car and truck that’s on the road, and to make the road safer for everyone. Discover how we can help make your fleet vehicles safer and less costly.
