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New Chevy Malibu helps parents monitor teen driver's performance

For teens, a driver's license can represent freedom. For parents, it can represent fear. Now there's a way parents can alleviate some of their worries and monitor their teen drivers. The 2016 Chevy Malibu, which debuted Wednesday at the New York Auto Show, contains a new feature that tracks driving performance and helps inexperienced drivers rein in some of their more dangerous habits. Accessed through a password in the car's infotainment system, parents can learn how far their child has driven, how fast they've gone and how many times they've braked hard, among other features. "It's an in-vehicle report card that gives parents information," says Mary Ann Beebe, one of the lead engineers who designed the system. "It's meant to be used as a teaching tool. Parents can sit down and talk with their teen about, 'Here are some areas where you're doing well, and here's some where you can use improvement.'" Car accidents are the leading cause of death for teens ages 16 to 19, and only last week, AAA released a study that found their driving behavior can leave them particularly susceptible to crashes. General Motors had sought ways to help educate and train younger drivers. In an era where data can be harvested from cars, monitoring performance is one way to provide information. Parents access the Teen Driver system in the car through a PIN-number entered into the Malibu's infotainment system. The report card can only be seen in the car – so far, it's not available via a smartphone app, like some other types of on-board diagnostic information. The system is activated by the use of a specially programmed key fob that lets the system know who is driving the car. Once the vehicle recognizes the key fob, it takes preventive measures to ensure safer conduct behind the wheel: Until the driver and front passenger buckle their seat belts, the radio is muted. Safety systems such as forward-collision assist and electronic stability control are automatically turned on. Parents can preset preferred speed limits, and drivers will hear a warning if that sound is exceeded. "We have these great technologies, and we want to make sure we turn them on for the teen," Beebe said. There are no geo-location aspects of the program, and data is stored on the car, not uploaded to the Cloud or even seen by General Motors, she said.

OnStar to offer 90-day driving assessment, possible insurance discount

General Motors has announced a brace of new features for OnStar, two of which could help you save money assuming you're willing to sign over some (more) personal details. The first is a driving assessment program in which OnStar takes note of certain driving parameters for 90 days, then provides the driver feedback on their driving, both individually and when compared to other drivers in the program, as well as driving tips. Think of it as OnStar's ICE version of the Nissan Leaf's CARWING feature that compares how efficient your electric driving is compared to other BEV drivers. In this case, though, certain drivers will have the chance to share their assessment with Progressive Insurance, and if the numbers are right they might get a "driving-based" discount from the insurance company. The assessment program is voluntary, and requires opting in. It will be available this summer on all new GM cars and some GM vehicles back to 2013. In case this sounds like Big Brother, let's not forget that Big Brother is already here and moved in so long ago that he's a member of the Kiwanis club and is hosting neighborhood block parties. Progressive already has a million enrollees in a program called Snapshot that tracks OBD II data to offer usage-based insurance to provide annual pricing based on how much you drive your car, with discounts of up to 30 percent. The OnStar effort is just another way to do that. The second feature is proximity offers through AtYourService, which notifies drivers to deals and information on their driving route and provides coupons from RetailMeNot and Entertainment Book. Beyond that, a deal with Priceline will let OnStar agents book hotels for you starting this year, there's a tie-in with Dunkin' Donuts, too, but we're fuzzy on those benefits, and third new feature lets Chevrolet owners know when certain parts need replacing. News Source: Detroit NewsImage Credit: AP Photo/Carlos Osorio Chevrolet GM Technology

Next-gen Chevy Volt will get 1.5-liter, four-cylinder engine

As General Motors gets ready to unveil the new Chevy Volt at the Detroit Auto Show in January, it's starting to reveal a few more details about the updated plug-in hybrid. Today should be fruitful on that front, thanks to an event GM is hosting today that focuses on the new Volt, and we've just had the first bit of new: a bigger engine is coming. Since the beginning, the Volt has used a 1.4-liter, four-cylinder engine as a range extender when the battery runs dry. The second-generation model will instead get a slightly larger 1.5-liter, four-cylinder engine that will be built in Flint, MI. That's a step up from the various engines that have been a part of the 2016 Volt's rumored mills, everything from a 1.0-liter or 1.2-liter three-cylinder to a 2.0-liter turbo. The confirmation about the new 1.5-liter powerplant was found in Automotive News, where we also heard again that GM is going to start building the new Volt's electric drive unit in Detroit, moving production up from Mexico. We will have more information on the 2016 Chevy Volt later today.