Breath-Testing Device Halts Drunks at the Wheel

DENVER —  Drivers who don’t always know when they have had one drink too many can now attach a device to their ignition that prevents them from starting their cars if their breath contains too much alcohol.

The Guardian Interlock sits on the dashboard, where the driver must blow into its mouthpiece for four seconds before turning the key.

A green light means clear sailing and connects the ignition, a yellow light allows the car to start but warns the driver that the limit is being approached, and a red light prevents ignition and means that the driver is legally impaired.

The machine, which sells for $295, measures the level of alcohol in the blood the same way as breath testers used by police. However, while failing the police test means that a driver has already endangered others and may face a revoked driver’s license, a stiff fine and possibly jail, flunking the Guardian’s test only means a temporarily conked-out car.

The manufacturer said its customers include motorists who voluntarily installed the device in their own cars and parents who purchased it for their children’s cars. It also may find a place in the sentencing of drunk drivers: Denver Dist. Atty. Norm Early said it would be “tremendously effective.”

Studies show that the average drunk driver has driven over the legal limit 200 times before the first arrest, and alcohol-related claims are responsible for 25 cents of every car insurance premium dollar, according to company president Kip Fuller.

The device can also be hooked up to boats or any motorized vehicle with an ignition system.