You properly could identify cars uniquely by the sound they make. If not now then soon.
replyMy dog could do this 10 years ago. 2 miles away through the canyon she knew exactly who would be showing up in 10 minutes. And it's a popular canyon.
replyHaving worked with the result of prior generations (circa 2010) of algorithms for that sort of thing in the radar spectrum (I was not privy to the actual algorithms that underpinned it all) I suspect accuracy drops off exponentially once you get away from text based stuff and flagrant body differences (missing mirror, aftermarket spoiler, etc).
replyNote that Flock has incorrectly identified several vehicles as "suspects" to police during investigations.
replyFlock has two obligations. Sell equipment to police. Avoid freaking the public out.
Their statements are almost certainly not reliable.
Absolutely they can. Vehicle panel colors, wheel rims, roofrack, tow hitch, bumper stickers, damage all factor into their vehicle fingerprinting.
replyAnd once they've got a real license plate for the vehicle, all the historical information for that vehicle fingerprint's activities are now linked.
I routinely add/remove many of those things so I'm not sure how reliable they are.
replyLike I alternate between hitch/no hitch/bike rack, add/remove roof rack (it hurts mileage and is easy to swap), swap between my summer and winter rims+tires, and rotating through a set of magnetic bumper stickers would be trivial.