UPDATE: NHTSA Pushes Back Standard Rear-View Cameras

Back in March last year, we reported that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) would make rear-view cameras a standard feature in all vehicles. Unfortunately, it looks like the NHTSA will be delaying the adoption of that rule for a while yet.

According to Autoblog, automakers were supposed to have rear-view cameras in a minimum 10 percent of their cars by 2012, 40 percent by 2013, and 100 percent of all vehicles by 2014. Right now, automakers are not on track to make those numbers, mainly because automakers have complained about the cost of making these cameras standard.

How much do these cameras cost automakers? Well, many cars currently come with display screens, and for those vehicles, the upgrade to a rear-view camera system is only $58 to $88. Vehicles that don’t have display screens, however, will cost $159 to $203 to upgrade. Consider, however, that back-over accidents cause an average of 183 fatalities and up to 7,419 injuries every year. Perhaps the cost of an upgrade is one that consumers and automakers should be willing to pay.

Readers, what do you think? Do you have a rear-view camera in your car, and do you think rear-view cameras should be mandatory? Leave a comment below, and let us know what you think!

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