OnStar Ends Dangerous High-Speed Chase

Jose Ruiz and his cousin were carjacked and the assailant drove off in Ruiz’s 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe, which was equipped with OnStar’s Stolen Vehicle Slowdown service that electronically disables the gas pedal. This vehicle-disabling service brought the SUV to a halt and allowed two Visalia police officers to quickly apprehend the thief, OnStar officials said.

This is the first instance of OnStar using the service to stop a police chase since the company began offering it for the 2009 model year. It took 16 minutes to disable the vehicle after Ruiz notified OnStar, preventing a potentially dangerous chase.

Last year, 334 people were killed around the country in police pursuits, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

OnStar’s vehicle-disabling service is now available on 18 of 30 vehicles for the 2010 model year, and the company hopes to have it standard throughout its lineup within the next several years.