by- FF Oliver Friedheim (Austin FD 28B)
This might be old news to some, but for those who haven’t
run across them, the latest crop of vehicles have a few “amenities” that we
should know about from a first responder’s point of view. My crew ran a call a
few shifts ago on a Lexus SUV that had a push on/off button on the dash instead
of a key. There is a "fob" that has to be inside the vehicle,
typically on the driver somewhere that both unlocks the car and allows it to
start. Systems vary across manufacturers, but we need to be aware of one
important feature that could interfere with our taking c-spine precautions.
When we reach across the PT, check the car is in park, and push the start/stop
button on the vehicle, the drivers car seat moves from it’s “drive” position
backwards, away from the steering wheel, and reclines. Additionally, the
steering wheel can retract, extend, and move up or down automatically. The
distance varies according to how the driver presets their driving position. In
the case of the Lexus, the seat moved forward about 6 inches, and the steering
wheel dropped about 3 when I sat in the car and hit the start button (needed to
drive it to the shoulder). The reverse would be true when shutting off the
vehicle. Just something to know/remember when taking c-spine precautions like we
did for that driver.
Additionally, we might be less inclined to expect these kind of features in
non-luxury vehicles, but the truth is, more than half of the cars manufactured
in 2014 come with a push-button start system. Honda, Scion, Nissan… the list goes
on. Not all will have seats that move automatically, but be aware that some
will.
The takeaway is this. Push-button start vehicles require a remote or “fob” in
or around the vehicle to unlock, start, and drive the vehicle. When the button
is pressed, be prepared for the drivers seat to move substantially, especially
in a case where c-spine precautions are being taken. This technology is no
longer only in top luxury brands, but filtering into vehicles we might not
expect to find it.
See links below for more information...
Keyless Entry
Memory Seats
We had a Tesla stop at our station today. Here are a few interesting things we learned about the vehicle from the owner.
ReplyDelete>> There is no push button start. When the key is inside the vehicle the car will go.
>> When the key is in the vehi...cle and the doors close, the door handles recess into the car door.
>> If you remove the keys from the vehicle, to avoid it from moving, the doors will lock.
>> In the rear there is a third row seat with two seats and harnesses for kids.
It is hard to know the details of every vehicle but we need to be aware that things are changing.