GM’s ignition switch problems have raised the question of whether push button ignition systems may be safer to use in automobiles than the standard keyed ignition. Key-less ignition systems have been used in luxury cars since the 1990’s, and most of today’s automobile manufacturers offer them as an option in approximately 72% of their vehicles sold today. Continue reading
The Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act, are several bills introduced to the United States Congress last February. If passed, the bill would require automobile manufacturers to give independent repair shops access to the same repair information their approved repair shops have. The legislation hopes to give consumers a choice to pick a repair facility best suited to their particular needs.
It is important to note, however, that under the California Lemon Law, a vehicle owners must give a manufacturer authorized dealer a reasonable number of repair attempts before their vehicle can be considered a lemon. While, the Right to Repair Act will give consumers more choice of where to take their vehicles, it may also negatively affect their lemon law rights. Continue reading
Santa Barbara Senator, Hannah-Beth Jackson is proposing a bill that will prohibit automobile dealers from selling, leasing, renting, or loaning used cars that are under recall until the problem can be repaired. Federal law already prohibits new cars from being sold when they have known recall defects, but Jackson’s bill would extend the ban to prevent unsafe automobiles from getting into the hands of unaware used car buyers. According to a poll carried out by Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety (CARS), a key supporter of the bill, almost 90% of Californian voters support the legislation. Continue reading
A record fine of $35 million U.S. will be paid out by GM after a government investigation into how GM handled the recall of 2.59 million vehicles over faulty ignition switches. GM’s agreement with regulators also includes significant changes into how the automobile manufacturer reviews safety problems and decides when to issue a recall.
Caring for your tires is essential in keeping you safe, saving you money, and reducing your vehicles environmental impact. Most newer vehicles have a tire pressure monitoring system, but by the time the warning goes off, your tires are already significantly under inflated.
The above video is a great resource put out by the NHTSA during their TireWise campaign, as a way to help consumers make smart decisions when buying and maintaining tires. For more information, visit NHTSA’s TireWise website.
General Motors will again be expanding its recall into ignition switch problems, adding an additional 971,000 vehicles that may have already been repaired for defective switches. According to GM, thousands of defective switches have been sold to dealers and parts wholesalers and may have been installed in cars from the 2008 model year and newer. Instead of trying to track down vehicles that may have been repaired with a faulty switch, the company has decided to expand the recall. Continue reading
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Toyota have come to a $1.2 billion settlement agreement that will end a four year investigation into the inadvertent acceleration of certain Toyota vehicles. During a new conference on Wednesday, Attorney General Eric Holder criticized the automobile manufacturer for misleading consumers through statements regarding the two issues that caused sudden acceleration in certain models. Continue reading
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Congress is questioning General Motors and government safety regulators as to why it took so long to recall 1.6 million vehicles with ignition problems, after a new review of federal crash data shows 303 deaths linked to air bag failure on two of the models recalled. The review of the air bag failures by the Friedman Research Corporation, adds to the mounting reports that General Motors and safety regulators knew about the ignition defect for almost a decade before recalling over 1.6 million 2005-2007 Chevrolet Cobalt, 2003-2007 Saturn Ions, 2005-2007 Pontiac Pursuit, 2006-2007 Chevrolet HHR, 2006-2007 Pontiac Solstice, 2007 Saturn Sky, and 2007 Pontiac G5 vehicles. Continue reading
