Hacker News Reader

Yeah, but really you were just driving close to the person in front. Remember, the person in front could emergency brake at any time. Even if you manage to detect that and emergency brake too, is the person behind you going to be able to?

Just don't drive close. Train yourself on what the proper distance is and stick to it.

Perhaps the reverse lights could activate when extremely hard braking is applied.

New cars they flicker rapidly I thought

Yes, they do. Some even activate hazard lights when coming to a rapid stop.