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4-year-old drove mom's car

On the news today: Thanks to Volvo for having the Neutral safety Switch but many cars still do not have one. This is a story for all of us to be careful with kids and car keys. Never know what they will do.

Reported by the Associated Press.

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4-Year-Old Mich. Boy Drives Mother's Car



SAND LAKE, Mich. (AP) - A boy drove his mother's car to a video store in the middle of the night, police said - and he's all of 4 years old.

Even though he was unable to reach the accelerator, the boy managed to put the car in gear and the idling engine provided enough power to take him slowly to the store, a quarter-mile from his home, about 1:30 a.m. Friday, Police Chief Doug Heugel said. Finding the store closed, the youngster began a slow trip home.

Weaving and with its headlights off, the car got the attention of police Sgt. Jay Osga, who initially thought he was following a driverless car that had taken off after being left running at a gas pump.

The car turned into the boy's apartment complex and struck two parked cars, then backed up and struck Osga's police car.


That's when Osga discovered the boy inside.


``He knew how to go from forward to reverse,'' Osga said Monday. ``The mother said she taught him how to drive by letting him sit on her lap and steer.''


No charges will be filed against the boy or his mother, Heugel said.


``He's 4 years old. His mom didn't even know he was up,'' Heugel told The Grand Rapids Press. ``I don't think he even realizes what he did.''








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    4-year-old drove mom's car

    I don't think a nuetral safety switch is going to do much good unless someone left the vehicle in a gear other than Park or Nuetral. A shift lock might help though. I don't think I've ever been in a car with an auto trans that did not have some kind of park/nuetral system. The shift locks, which most of the domestics have run for years, are still kind of a recent developement for Volvo. I own 6 Volvos between 83-93 and only the 960 has a shift lock. Glad the kid was alright, someone should slap the mom though.







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