GM Parts Order Center Of New Evidence Surrounding Ignition Recall
Just when you thought the meat of the story had long since been consumed, a lovely roast was just delivered courtesy of an email chain between General Motors and Delphi regarding a large order of parts months ahead of the February 2014 ignition switch recall.
Takata Issues Newer, Wider Annual Loss Forecast For FY 2014
The hits keep coming for Takata as its airbag debacle moves forward, this time with announcement that its annual loss forecast will grow wider than previously stated.
First GM Ignition Lawsuit Trial Set For January 2016
It’s official: the first bellwether trial involving a lawsuit against General Motors over its role in the February 2014 ignition switch recall is set for January 2016.
NHTSA Orders More Documents From Honda About Takata Recall
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is demanding more satisfaction from Honda in as many days over the automaker’s role in the ongoing Takata airbag recall crisis, asking for more documents in a second request.
B&B Reject Red-Light Cameras In Three States On Election Night
Tuesday, the B&B made their voice known on the issues affecting them, including a set of referendums on the infamous red-light traffic camera.
GM Offers Gift Cards To 700K Affected By Ignition Recall
Just in time for Black Friday or Black Thanksgiving (for those heathens who really want Alex from Target to scan their cheap HDTV, instead of giving him the day off by voting with their wallets), General Motors will be giving their customers a $25 gift card if they bring in their vehicles affected by the February 2014 recall by December 1.
Suppliers Come To Takata's Aid Amid Airbag Recall Crisis
Takata may not being doing so hot amid its airbag crisis, but it is providing an opportunity for at least two other airbag suppliers.
Honda Ordered To Answer For Its Role In Takata Airbag Recall By November 24
Takata is no longer alone in facing an intense federal investigation over in its airbag recall action: Honda, too, has been ordered to answer under oath for its role in the recall.
Obama Administration In Search Of New, Permanent NHTSA Boss
Think you could be the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s next top boss? Then you’re in luck: The Obama administration is looking for someone to fill the shoes currently worn by interim chief David Friedman.
Ford Brings Telematics To Law Enforcement For Greater Safety, Transparency
To further transparency and improve safety, Ford and Telogis have debuted a system that will gather information on a given police officer’s driving practices.
AutoNation Ceases Sales Of Used Models Affected By Takata Recall
Automotive retailer AutoNation is pulling used vehicles off the lot that may be affected by the ongoing Takata airbag recall.
NHTSA Under The Gun Again Over Handling Of Takata Airbag Recall
Not long after undergoing scrutiny over its part of the February 2014 General Motors ignition switch recall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration once again is under the gun, this time in its handling of the Takata airbag crisis.
UC Berkeley Study: Lane-Splitting Safety, Acceptance Increase In 2014
Motorcycles passing through slow traffic on either side of the rider is a rarity in the United States, where only California officially gives it the thumbs-up when conditions are safe to do so. A recent study of lane-splitting further confirms the safety and acceptance of the practice.
Auto Industry Groups Join Forces To Secure Vehicle Communications
A pair of auto manufacturer groups are coming together to form a consortium meant to prevent crackers — the correct term for those whose goal is to give computer security a good thrashing — from busting up a given vehicle’s communication system, one that has the blessing of the federal government.
US House Committee Reviewing Takata Airbag Recall
With around 7.8 million vehicles from various automakers under recall thanks to defects in airbags supplied by Takata, the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee is reviewing the proceedings.
Sit Down, Waldo: City Council Disbands Police Over Speed Trap Rep
The city council of Waldo, Fla. — population 1,000 — sternly told its police department to take a seat in the shame bus, disbanding the force after its chief and interim chief both resigned amid an investigation into the town’s reputation as a speed trap.
GM Puts Stop-Delivery Order On Colorado, Canyon Twins
If you ordered one of General Motors’ new mid-size pickups, your delivery may be a bit late, thanks to an airbag recall.
Toyota Recalls 690K Tacomas Over Rear Suspension Issues
Own a 2005 through 2011 Toyota Tacoma? It may be under recall due to rear suspension issues.
Lenders Monitor, Control Subprime Nexum Via Connected Vehicle Tech
In a perverse nexus where connected-vehicle technology, privacy and subprime lending intersect, consumers who fall behind on so much as a single payment, or even stray outside a given teritory, may find their vehicles shutdown by their lender from a digital panopticon.
US District Court Orders Discovery For Some GM Ignition Switch Suits
Last Friday, U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman issued from his bench in the Southern District of New York an order for discovery to begin on a number of cases related to the February 2014 General Motors ignition switch recall.
Virginia Company Unveils Text-Detection Device
From the commonwealth where radar detectors are verboten, and speeding has more in common with sex crimes than physical graffiti, a local company has developed a device that can detect the sort of signals a phone might emit when its owner is texting.
House Dems Take Republicans To Task Over NHTSA Report
In the wake of a report written by Republican members of the United States House of Representatives regarding the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration inability to find and link evidence regarding General Motors’ involvement in the design and implementation of an ignition switch now linked to 54 accidents and 19 fatalities, two Democrat members took the report’s authors to task.
Friedman: GM, Not NHTSA, Most To Blame For Recall Crisis
It was a long day for David Friedman and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration during congressional testimony Tuesday, admitting before a Senate panel that his agency has more work to do to improve itself, and that General Motors made “incredibly poor decisions” as far as recalls were concerned.
Ford Debuting Self-Unparking Technology In 2015 Edge
Though Ford, Lincoln, BMW and others have mastered the art of parallel parking in tight spaces for their customers, it turns out the systems used do it too well, prompting Ford to give “unparking” a go.
GM, NHTSA Deliberated Saturn Vue Issue Thrice Prior To Recall
The General Motors recall train has boarded quite a few passengers since leaving the station in late February of this year. For one passenger, the 2002-2004 Saturn Vue (V-U-E, if you’re Keith Sweat), it took some deliberation by the conductors and fare inspectors before allowing the compact crossover aboard.
General Motors Looks To Cameras To Solve Distracted Driving
Until the overlords at Google bestow their technocratic utopia of automation to every new vehicle leaving the factory, distracted driving will remain a problem in need of a solution, such as the one General Motors has in mind.
Google Wanted Autonomous Vehicle Driver Interventions Kept Quiet
In the entire time Google has been working on delivering an autonomous future upon the driving populace, only one accident was reported, and was caused by human error. That said, the tech giant would prefer you not to know that or of any similar future incidents.
NHTSA 2016 V2V Proposal Open For Public Comment
NHTSA Unveils VIN Recall Look-up Tool For Consumers
With as many as 26 million vehicles recalled by General Motors alone thus far in 2014, consumers may have a hard time determining if their vehicle needs to be repaired. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has come up with a tool to help, however.
Honda Tops Most Stolen List, Overall Figure Lowest Since 1967
The National Insurance Crime Bureau released its newest list of the top 10 vehicles most likely to be stolen, with Honda and pickups leading the pack in a year that has seen the lowest number of vehicles stolen since 1967.
General Motors Expands Ignition Website To Cover 20 Affected Models
Once reporting information on the group of vehicles affected by the February 2014 recall, General Motors’ website on the matter recently expanded to cover all 20 vehicles affected by the original and subsequent recalls over ignition problems.
NHTSA Unveils Plan Instituting New V2V Technology By 2020
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration unveiled its plan to institute minimums regarding vehicle-to-vehicle communications in an effort to bolster driver safety.
Chinese Government Investigating Quality Issues Among Volkswagen Sagitars
Amid complaints of broken rear shafts from Sagitar owners, China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine has contacted Volkswagen to fix the problem.
Local, Federal Officials Begin Work On Connected, Autonomous Vehicle Regulations
Connected and autonomous vehicles are slowly but surely coming into reality, enough time for local and federal authorities to come up with solutions to solve issues of privacy and safety.
Federal Highway Safety Grants Go Mostly Unclaimed Over Stringent Qualifications
Aside from funding issues with the U.S. Highway Trust Fund, state governments are having a difficult time applying — and receiving — federal grants to make their part of the system safer.
New Round of IIHS Small Offset Tests a Mixed Bag
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released the results of its latest round of small offset crash tests. This latest group of twelve cars posted a wide range of scores, highlighting the challenging nature of the Institute’s newest test. Only one car earned a “Good” rating from the Institute for this test, with several receiving the lowest score of “Poor.”
New York City First In Nation To Ban Sales Of Unrepaired Recalled Used Vehicles
Shopping for a used vehicle in New York City? Thanks to city officials, the used car you buy will likely be a bit safer, as all 800 used dealerships must fix recalled vehicles prior to purchase, as well as fix those sold after the fact.
GM Warned Of Rental-Car Crashes As Early As 2005
Several years prior to the February 2014 General Motors ignition switch recall, car rental companies did their best to get the automaker’s attention regarding a series of accidents and fatalities linked to the latter’s low-cost fleet offerings.
Honda Dealerships Asked To Issue Waivers Over Defective Airbags
Ever wonder what would happen if Dethklok decided to go into the automotive business, especially with the virtual band’s use of pain waivers as a legal means to protect themselves from whatever death and/or dismemberment would likely occur during a concert?
Wonder no more: Honda is asking its dealers to ask their customers to sign a waiver acknowledging the used car they’re about to buy off the lot may have an Takata airbag that, in the event of a crash, could kill them upon deployment.
British Police To Confiscate Phones Immediately After Accidents
UK drivers who find themselves in an accident may also see their cell phones confiscated by the police to determine if they were used prior to said accident.
Hacking Traffic Lights for Fun and Profit!
In a few weeks, at WOOT (the USENIX Workshop on Offensive Technologies — an academic conference where security researchers demonstrate broken stuff), a team from the University of Michigan will be presenting a lovely paper, Green Lights Forever: Analyzing the Security of Traffic Infrastructure. It’s a short and fun read. In summary, it’s common for traffic light controllers to speak to each other over a 5.8GHz wireless channel (much like WiFi, but a dedicated frequency) with no cryptography, default usernames and passwords, and well-known and exploitable bugs. Oh boy. And what can we do with that?
DOT Dozen Call For Congress To Focus On Long-Term Of Infrastructure Funding
Alongside 11 former U.S. Department of Transportation secretaries, current secretary Anthony Foxx urged both houses of Congress to find a long-term solution to the funding of the U.S. Highway Trust Fund beyond what is under consideration at present.
Cell Phone Bans Failing To Curb Accident Rates
If any legislators were hoping banning cell phone use behind the wheel would cut down on accidents and fatalities linked to distracted driving, it may have been all for naught according to a handful of studies on the matter.
Foxx: No Penalties Issued Within NHTSA Over GM Ignition Recall
Though General Motors gave 15 of its employees the ax over their part of the February 2014 ignition switch recall, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx told those in the National Press Club Monday that no one in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was fired or disciplined over their part of the recall and subsequent fallout.
Chrysler Group Asks For Hitch Production Boost Amid NHTSA Inquiry
A day after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked what was taking so long for a supplier to make enough hitches to cover 2.5 million recalled vehicles, Chrysler Group ordered its supplier to boost production.
Oil Booms Slowed Down By Weakening Roads
For the past few years, the oil booms in North Dakota and southern Texas have brought in a lot of money wherever oil could be drawn out. At the same time, the booms have taken their toll on amenities and infrastructure, the latter now the cause of slowing the boom down.
Delphi "Not A Target" Of DOJ Investigation
Though under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service over abode issues, Delphi says it is not under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice over its part of the February 2014 General Motors ignition recall.
Reuters: GM Ignition Woes Came As Early As 1997
It may have taken nearly 14 years for one ignition switch issue to finally find attention, but General Motors’ ignition woes go as far back as 1997, when Chevrolet Malibu owners had their own switch problems.
Automotive Archaeology: Where Eaton Crash Tested the First Practical Airbags
One of the Best & Brightest recently asked me to write about the history of automotive safety equipment. Today’s consumers ask how many airbags a car offers as standard equipment but in the 1970s the idea had a difficult time getting accepted, by both automakers and consumers.
Senator Rockefeller Proposes Legislation To Strengthen NHTSA
Outgoing chair of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Senator Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia (pictured at right) has proposed legislation that would authorize increased funding and authority to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to deal with safety defects in vehicles.
GM Issues Chevy Cruze Stop-Sale Over Defective Airbag Units
Airbag supplier Takata’s woes continue as General Motors has issued a stop-sale of 33,000 2013 and 2014 Chevrolet Cruzes equipped with the supplier’s airbag units.
Google Debuts Android Auto During I/O Keynote
Google’s entry into the connected-car game stepped up to the next level this week when Android Auto was unveiled before the developers in attendance at the 2014 Google I/O Keynote Address.
GM Offers Incentives To Speed Up Ignition Recall Repairs
With 2.6 million vehicles needing new ignition switches fueling service bay backlogs, General Motors is offering its dealership network incentives to speed up the process.
Nissan UK: Leaf Dominated EV Sales In 2013
Though consumers in the United Kingdom may not have been too interested in electric vehicles last year, Nissan says the majority of those sold belong to the automaker.
NHTSA Investigates Chrysler Group Air Bag, Ignition Issues
General Motors no longer has the monopoly on ignition and air bag problems, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is looking into Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Chrysler Group over those very issues.
GM Corporate Culture Silenced Whistleblower Over Fuel-Leak Recall
To say General Motors has a failure to communicate among itself and with the outside is an understatement that grows with each passing day, especially in light of how it treated a whistleblower in 2003 over its handling of a recall regarding fuel leaks in the automaker’s line of compact SUVs.
European Taxi Drivers Take To The Streets Against Uber
Much like it has in the United States, Uber and other ride-sharing services have upended the traditional taxi in Europe. Just like the U.S., taxi operators have protested the disruption the new services have caused upon them, citing the lack of properly licensed drivers and thoroughly maintained vehicles as a reason to bring them in line with the same regulations they already are mandated to follow. However, unlike the U.S., European taxi drivers took their complaints to the streets, and then some.
Nine States Investigate GM Ignition Switch Recall
In today’s General Motors digest: Nine states are investigating the handling of the automaker’s ignition switch recall; compensation will only focus on those injured or killed; a Georgia injury claim’s transfer to New York a sign of things to come for similar claims; and a federal official saw GM’s corporate culture at work during bankruptcy proceedings, yet remained silent.
Barra, Valukas To Meet With House Committee Next Week
As promised in April before both the U.S. House and Senate, General Motors CEO Mary Barra will appear next Wednesday in Washington, D.C. for a second round of congressional hearings over the February 2014 GM ignition switch recall.
AAA: 51 Percent Surveyed Willing To Pay For Better Roads
As those inside the Beltway debate how best to fund their responsibility for the nation’s transportation infrastructure, a AAA study finds most Americans would pay more taxes for better roads.
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