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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Autos

Black box for teen drivers

Nothing says safety like installing a black box on the dashboard of your kid’s car. It’s called Tiwi, an enduring sign of parental distrust made especially for the young person entering the first formative years of their driving experience. 

Tiwi comes equipped with GPS capable of mapping the local speed limits and comparing them to the speed of the car whose OBD II port they lovingly accommodate. If things are going too fast, Tiwi will reprimand the driver,” You’re exceeding the speed limit, please slow down.” In addition to speed, the little box also has customizable accelerometers to measure breaking and cornering levels. Parents can set their own parameters at the company’s website and choose to be notified via text, phone or email when they are broken.

Should they be, Tiwi acts as a handless phone if parents would like to call the vehicle directly after being notified of an infraction. In the event that accident should occur, Tiwi can call the authorities itself. 

Inthinc, which makes Tiwi, has also been the main supplier of crash data recorders for NASCAR since the death of Dale Earnhardt in 2001. Tiwi went on sale in July for $549 with a monthly subscription fee of $24.95 to $34.95 depending on the options. During the launch period there was a “race fan” $100 discount and one year of free service. Visit www.tiwi.com for more information.



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