Tag: chrysler

Fully driverless cars could be months away

Enlarge / Waymo is using a fleet of Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans to develop its self-driving technology. (credit: Waymo) Real driverless cars could come to the Phoenix area this year, according to a Monday report from The Information’s Amir Efrati. Two anonymous sources have told Efrati that Google’s self-driving car unit, Waymo, is preparing to launch “a commercial ride-sharing service powered by self-driving vehicles with no human ‘safety’ drivers as soon as this fall.” Obviously, there’s no guarantee that Waymo will hit this ambitious target. But it’s a sign that Waymo believes its technology is very close to being ready for commercial use. And it suggests that Waymo is likely to introduce a fully driverless car network in 2018 if it doesn’t do so in the remaining months of 2017. Waymo plans to launch first in the Phoenix suburbs Efrati reports that Waymo CEO John Krafcik faces pressure from his boss, Google co-founder and Alphabet CEO Larry Page, to transform Waymo’s impressive self-driving technology into a shipping product. Page had been pushing for a launch by the end of 2016. But a major deal with Ford to produce the necessary vehicles fell through, forcing Waymo to scramble and sign a smaller deal with Fiat Chrysler  to supply minivans. Read 9 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Fully driverless cars could be months away

Google’s self-driving tech goes into Chrysler minivans this year (update: official)

That rumored deal between Google and Fiat Chrysler for self-driving car technology? It’s reportedly happening… if not quite in the way you’d expect. Bloomberg sources claim that the arrangement will put some of Google’s autonomous tech into the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica minivan sometime this year. Just how deep this integration would go isn’t clear, but it’s not believed to be an exclusive arrangement — either side could cooperate with other partners. If the leak is accurate, the deal could be signed as soon as May 3rd (if you’re reading this in time, today). Once again, the partnership makes more sense than you might think. Google (or rather, Alphabet) already said that it wasn’t going to mass-produce its own cars, so it was always going to need help — this is its first major deal. Fiat Chrysler, meanwhile, has been hoping for a fast track to self-driving technology to help it compete against rivals that have already done a lot of legwork . And minivans? They could make more sense than you think. While you’re unlikely to see truly driverless Chryslers anytime soon, this would show that Google’s know-how can improve one of the most mainstream vehicles you can find: a run-of-the-mill (if relatively high-end) family carrier. If Google and Fiat Chrysler succeed there, the technology could easily spread to other models and manufacturers. Update: Yes, it’s official .. although it’s not quite how it was originally portrayed. Google is adding “about 100” Pacifica hybrid vans to its fleet of self-driving cars, the first of which will hit the streets by the end of 2016. Sorry, folks, you won’t get to drive one yourself. Fiat Chrysler is making it easy for Google to install its systems, and the minivan design conveniently allows for testing larger, more passenger-friendly vehicles that can incorporate features like “hands-free sliding doors.” Source: Bloomberg

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Google’s self-driving tech goes into Chrysler minivans this year (update: official)

OwnStar car hacker can remotely unlock BMWs, Benz and Chrysler

Last month security researcher Samy Kamar announced a vulnerability that allowed him to remotely unlock OnStar-enabled GM cars . While that issue has been fixed, it looks like the same vulnerability found in OnStar is also present in BMW Remote, Mercedes’ mbrace and Chrysler’s Uconnect. Kumar told Engadget via email, “the issue itself is the same exact SSL certificate issue that affected OnStar/GM (which they’ve resolved two weeks ago). It was barely any tweaking of the original system — a few lines of code to add support per vehicle.” Uh oh. I’ve updated OwnStar to also unlock cars from and attack BMW Remote, Mercedes-Benz mbrace, and Chrysler Uconnect. https://t.co/qRsjtLnRlM — Samy Kamkar (@samykamkar) August 13, 2015 The OwnStar device intercepts communication between a vehicle and its companion app and sends that information — including login information — to Kamar who then has control of the vehicle via the app and can unlock it. If you’re feeling smug about your vehicle because Kamar hasn’t called it out, you might want to curb that. The SSL certificate issue that allows a person to log in to a vehicle is pretty widespread. “Unfortunately it’s prevalent among half the other mobile unlocking apps I’ve tested, ” Kamar said. A Chrysler spokesperson told Engadget, “Consumer safety and security is our highest priority.” And that it “supports the responsible disclosure and remediation of cyber security vulnerabilities. Consistent with our focus on consumer safety and security FCA US opposes irresponsible disclosure of explicit ‘how to’ information that can help criminals gain unauthorized access to vehicles and vehicle systems.” Kamar won’t be releasing the updated code for OwnStar for at least 30 days so the automakers have a chance to update their systems. But if you’re an automaker that hasn’t been called out by hackers or security researchers, you might want to check your systems anyways. We have contacted BMW and Mercedes Benz for this article and will update when they reply to our queries. Filed under: Misc , Transportation Comments Source: Samy Kamar Tags: BMW, Chrysler, MercedesBenz, OwnStar, SamyKamar, Security

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OwnStar car hacker can remotely unlock BMWs, Benz and Chrysler