The House of Energy and Commerce Committee have introduced a safety bill designed to increase penalties for auto, tire, and auto parts makers that fail to recall defective products or notify the government of safety problems. The Vehicle Safety Improvement Act, introduced Feb. 27, 2015, hopes to address a number of shortfalls in the current system by enhancing congress oversight of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and making safety information more readily available to consumers. Continue reading →

With a record number of recalls released last year, people visiting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website to check the VIN number of their vehicle to see if it has been recalled, may experience problems accessing the information they are looking for. The service has been slow after automakers released another round of recalls for defective Takata airbags. About 33.8 million vehicles, manufactured by 11 different automakers, have already been recalled to replace frontal airbags on the driver’s side and/or passenger’s side, because they could deploy with too much force, injuring and in some instances killing occupants. Six fatalities and over 100 injuries have already been linked to the problem. Continue reading →

After six (6) unsuccessful repair attempts, the owner of a 2011 Chevrolet Silverado decided to contact our California lemon law offices for advice. He was experiencing repeated problems with several systems in his truck, including smoke from the exhaust, a check engine light that remains on, and a defective rear door. Despite numerous complaints, his GMC dealer was unable to fix the problems. Continue reading →

Mitsubishi has launched two separate safety campaigns affecting certain Lancer and Outlander vehicles manufactured between 2009-2011.

Safety Campaign 15V-232 (SR-15-002): An inappropriate manufacturing process of certain electrical parts within the ETACS ECU may result in a high electrical resistance and unstable voltage within the system. Loss of headlights, windshield wipers, and tail lights could result, reducing drivers visibility, and increasing the risk of an accident. Drivers will be warned of an ETACS malfunction through an illuminating engine and/or brake warning lamp. Continue reading →

According to reports filed on the NHTSA website, certain 2015 Chevrolet Colorado and 2015 GMC Canyon trucks may fail to meet the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for seating systems. An investigation opened in January found certain seat frame attachment hooks, securing the drivers and passenger seats, may have not been properly attached to the vehicle body during the assembly process. The seat could detach, increasing the risk of injury to occupants. Continue reading →

Takata continues to make the news as Japans three biggest automobile manufacturers, Toyota, Nissan, and Honda, announce that they are expanding the recall for faulty airbags. Over 30 million vehicles world wide have been recalled over the defect and it has been linked to six deaths and over 100 injuries. Although it is not known for sure why Takata airbags are prone to exploding some suspect the ammonium nitrate used to inflate them can overheat, especially in high humidity, and shower passengers and drivers with shrapnel from the canisters holding them. Continue reading →