SiriusXM Gets Serious About Vehicle Safety

SiriusXM satellite radio provides a range of programming – from oldies to news – to subscribing car owners.

But now SiriusXM wants to get serious about offering something else: Driver safety assistance through a connected-vehicle initiative.

Spearheading that program is Peter Polit, vice president and general manager of SiriusXM’s connected vehicle business development and partnerships. Part of his job is to convince people of the role his company can play in advanced driver assistance.

“Connectivity will be a change agent,” he says at a recent J.D. Power industry conference called Automotive Revolution. “But a system is only as good as a driver’s willingness to use it. Adoption is critical.”

He sees SiriusXM’s pilot platform as alerting drivers to such hazards as icy road conditions, an accident or a toxic spill on the pavement yonder. “You’d like to know if there is a chemical spill ahead,” Polit says.

The system would also alert wayward drivers that they are traveling the wrong way on a one-way street, he says.

Such warnings could appear on a vehicle’s infotainment system screen or on a portion of the rearview mirror.

“We can warn each other if all vehicles had this,” Polit says.

New SiriusXM technology also lets auto dealers maintain a connection with their customers post-vehicle purchase and encourages them to return to the dealership for service needs.