While lifesaving advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are available in many new vehicles, drivers don't always understand the technology. Now the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) is aiming a new educational campaign at all drivers. 

Specifically, NHTSA has rolled out a series of safety videos featuring Jason Fenske, a mechanical engineer, YouTube personality, and host of Engineering Explained. The campaign launched on May 17 and will run through Sept. 29 on Fenske’s channel as well as NHTSA’s website. 

The five short videos are titled Four Technologies That Could Prevent Your Next Car Crash; Rear Automatic Braking; Blind Spot Intervention; Lane Keeping Assistance; and Automatic High Beams. In addition, there is a four-part summary video that explores blind spot warning, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and pedestrian automatic emergency braking. 

The videos fill a real need. In 2018, AAA released research that showed consumers are confused about the capabilities of various ADAS technologies and how they work. In fact, 40% of those surveyed said they expect driver support systems with names like Autopilot, ProPILOT or Pilot Assist, to have the ability to drive the car by itself — indicating a gap in consumer understanding of these technologies and reality.

NHTSA’s educational series is designed to help close that knowledge gap. The Jason Fenske video series builds on a campaign NHTSA launched in 2020 on social media, “Your Car Needs You,” and the videos are in keeping with NHTSA’s long-term commitment to safety through its successful 5-Star Safety Ratings program.