Tech giant Google has been running its subsidiary company called Google Auto LLC to fully develop its fleet of self-driving car in the near future, according to documents obtained by The Guardian.
Google Auto was established 2011 when Google replaced its self-driving Toyotas (Prius models) with Lexus SUVs, The Verge reported via The Guardian. In the documents presented, Google Auto serves as the official manufacturer of the company's 23 self-driving Lexus cars. Significantly, this list includes those autonomous cars that were involved in recently publicized accidents. Google Auto was also used to apply for each car's vehicle identification number or VIN, The Verge restated.
Meanwhile, analysts said that running the whole self-driving car project through a subsidiary, Google presumably could have helped protect itself from risk. Google Auto would have assumed the liability instead of Google, had lawsuits been filed over the recent accidents. And by doing this, Google has intelligently protected its financial assets, according to The Guardian.
Moreover, The Guardian confirms via paperwork obtained from a couple of California offices that the registered cars are rear-wheel drives, with each wheel having its own braking system. These autonomous cars are powered by a 20-30kW electric motor from a lithium ion battery. Documents prove that all the cars built have been assembled by the engineering firm Roush, Google's manufacturing partner located in the outskirts of Detroit, Michigan.
Meanwhile, documents shown confirm Google Auto is headed by none other than Chris Urmson himself, the chief of Google's self-driving car initiative, Fusion restated. He was appointed Google Auto's manager last May.
Lastly, Google Auto manager insisted himself that Google Auto LLC has not offered any of its LSVs for sale, and it does not plan to do so. However, that does not rule out Google Auto from selling driverless cars direct to the public later on, The Guardian speculated.
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