President Obama hasn't even signed the "Cash for Clunkers" legislation into law yet, but already criminals and some unscrupulous car dealers are using it to dupe consumers.
You don't have to look too far into the past to find a time when automakers didn't see car safety as a "selling point." But over the last 30 years, car safety has become a prime factor in the minds of car buyers.
The government is urging owners of 5 million recalled Ford vehicles to bring them to dealerships to repair a cruise control switch system that has been tied to engine fires
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has put out another recall warning the owners of some Ford, Lincoln and Mercury SUV's, pickup trucks, vans and cars that their vehicles have a defect that could cause them to catch fire at any time.
Driving a car is a complex physical and mental operation. Not only does it require coordination and reflexes, it also requires rapid assessment skills and good judgment.
BMW AG said Wednesday it was recalling 200,000 vehicles over concerns that the front passenger air bag may not deploy in a crash
The ultra-tiny Smart ForTwo earned top marks in side and front crash tests, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said Wednesday. The two-seat car did not earn the Institute's Top Safety Pick designation, however, because it didn't earn top marks for whiplash protection.
The tiny Smart ForTwo, recently introduced in the U.S. car market, gave a less-than-stellar performance in its first crash test by the federal government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a formal investigation into possible fires in General Motors' new full-size SUV.
An energy bill that requires the average fuel economy of all the nation's cars and trucks to be 35 miles per gallon by 2020 sounds sweeping, but don't look for any immediate big changes in the kinds of vehicles sold in this country.
President Obama hasn't even signed the "Cash for Clunkers" legislation into law yet, but already criminals and some unscrupulous car dealers are using it to dupe consumers.
You don't have to look too far into the past to find a time when automakers didn't see car safety as a "selling point." But over the last 30 years, car safety has become a prime factor in the minds of car buyers.
The government is urging owners of 5 million recalled Ford vehicles to bring them to dealerships to repair a cruise control switch system that has been tied to engine fires
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has put out another recall warning the owners of some Ford, Lincoln and Mercury SUV's, pickup trucks, vans and cars that their vehicles have a defect that could cause them to catch fire at any time.
Driving a car is a complex physical and mental operation. Not only does it require coordination and reflexes, it also requires rapid assessment skills and good judgment.
BMW AG said Wednesday it was recalling 200,000 vehicles over concerns that the front passenger air bag may not deploy in a crash
The ultra-tiny Smart ForTwo earned top marks in side and front crash tests, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said Wednesday. The two-seat car did not earn the Institute's Top Safety Pick designation, however, because it didn't earn top marks for whiplash protection.
The tiny Smart ForTwo, recently introduced in the U.S. car market, gave a less-than-stellar performance in its first crash test by the federal government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a formal investigation into possible fires in General Motors' new full-size SUV.
An energy bill that requires the average fuel economy of all the nation's cars and trucks to be 35 miles per gallon by 2020 sounds sweeping, but don't look for any immediate big changes in the kinds of vehicles sold in this country.
It's been the kind of year when the total number of recalls almost seemed to match auto industry production figures.
Every year, millions of dollars' worth of vehicles end up as masses of tangled sheet metal and twisted parts in crash tests across the country. Those tests have saved millions of lives since they began six decades ago.
The 2008 Ford Mustang is the first convertible to ever earn five-star ratings in all crash tests performed by the federal government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Ford announced Thursday.
Toyota Motor Corp. says it will recall floor mats in 55,000 of its 2007 Lexus ES 350 and 2007 Camry models that, if not secured in place, could slip and get trapped under or over the accelerator. This could cause a car to accelerate even after the driver lifted his or her foot off the gas pedal.
Toyota Motor Corp. says it will recall floor mats in its 2007 Lexus ES 350 and the 2007 Camry models that, if not secured in place, could slip and get trapped under or over the accelerator. This could cause a car to accelerate even after the driver lifted his or her foot off the gas pedal.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will sign a memorandum of cooperation with China on Wednesday, said NHTSA administrator Nicole Nason.
As many as 295,000 sets of car fuses, each containing 120 fuses, are being recalled because some allow more electrical current through than they should, according to a newspaper report.
New passenger vehicles will be required to provide head protection in side crashes for 2013 model-year vehicles, the government said Wednesday.
Traffic deaths in the United States dropped to a record low last year, according to figures released Monday by the Department of Transportation.
The company that imported Chinese tires at the center of a recall demand by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will recall the tires and replace them until the company, Foreign Tire Sales (FTS), has run out of funds.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has ordered a recall of 450,000 light truck tires that could have an increased risk of tread separation.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has added the Hyundai Santa Fe, a midsized SUV, to its list vehicles that earned the group's Top Safety Pick award.
Remember those plastic yellow "warning" signs people stuck on their cars back in the '80s -- "baby on board"? Maybe it's time they came back in style. Only this time, let's stick them on our foreheads. Because let's face it: In our constantly rushed and sleep-deprived state, we moms often don't drive as safely as we should.
Of course you have a car safety seat, but are you using it properly? The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates misuse to be as high as 80 percent.
Honda Motor Co. is recalling 81,000 Accord sedans in the United States because of faulty wiring in an airbag sensor on the driver's side, U.S. regulators said Friday.
Consumer Reports, the consumer product testing magazine, announced Thursday that is withdrawing a recent report on rear-facing infant car seats after learning of a problem in the way some of the tests were conducted.
Drivers smashing into deer on U.S. roads is an increasing, costly and dangerous problem, according to an insurance survey released Tuesday.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced a proposed rule Thursday that will require Electronic Stability Control on all passenger vehicles in the United States.
Everyone's familiar with the idea of "black boxes" in commercial airliners. They keep a record of everything the aircraft does so that, in the event of an accident, investigators can reconstruct what happened in the minutes leading up to the crash.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has passed a regulation requiring car makers to inform customers when their car has been equipped with an Event Data Recorder, the agency said Monday.
Proposed federal rules designed to make car roofs stronger in case of a vehicle rollover, already under attack as too lax by safety advocates, are now being criticized by automakers as too tough, according to a published report.
This fall, Toyota will voluntarily recall nearly 160,000 Toyota Tundra pickups so that they can be made less safe for children riding in the front seat.
When the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety first started performing its own front crash tests in the mid-1990s, about half the vehicles scored "Marginal" or "Poor."
Ten states, along with the District of Columbia, have filed a lawsuit against the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, calling the new fuel efficiency standards a "sham," the attorney general for Connecticut said Tuesday.
Name a car, and there's at least one award that its maker can brag about winning from the Automotive Award-Giving Institute, or some such entity. Even respected vehicle-rating firms collectively be...
Drowsiness is the single biggest attention-related risk factor on the road, said a new study released Thursday that followed drivers constantly through commutes and crashes alike.
A new study lends scientific credence to what many already suspect: Drivers dabbing on makeup, chatting on cell phones or eating breakfast are three times as likely to be involved in a crash as more attentive motorists.
Despite improvements an engineering and safety technology, smaller passenger vehicles still have higher death rates than larger vehicles, according to a report released Monday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Auto safety advocates are criticizing new rules requiring stronger vehicle roofs because of a provision that would limit lawsuits against auto manufacturers.
The death rate in auto crashes went down again last year, according to data released Monday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. But there were some exceptions to that trend.
Throughout your driving life, choosing the right car always involves three competing factors: the need for a reliable set of wheels; the desire for a vehicle that reflects your evolving financial s...
SUVs are more stable and less prone to rollovers than they were in 2001, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Wednesday.
Cell phones and other wireless devices contributed to the most automobile crashes, near-crashes and other incidents, according to a published report of a government study due to be released later this month.
The tire industry wants the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to weigh in on a growing debate over whether consumers should replace older tires that are not worn, according to a published report.
The use of electronic devices such as cell phones, including hands-free, precipitated many crashes and near misses, according to a report Thursday.
Consumers may soon be able to see a vehicle's safety rating posted as part of the basic information on a car's window sticker, according to a report Friday.
Federal authorities have opened an investigation of more than 1.2 million General Motors Corp. pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles in 21 "salt belt" states amid questions about the vehicles' antilock brakes.
The Federal crash-test program may understate rollover and side-impact risks, a newspaper report said Thursday, citing a government report.
Starting in September, all new vehicles will be equipped with tire pressure monitoring systems that could save about 120 lives a year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Friday.
The 2005 models of the Toyota Tacoma and the Dodge Dakota received the top safety ratings in both front and side crash tests, the government reported Wednesday, while the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra got the lowest ratings.
Acting to prevent tire failures linked to deadly rollovers of sport-utility vehicles, federal regulators will issue a final rule this week requiring all new passenger cars and trucks to have individual tire-pressure- monitoring sensors by the 2008 model year, Wednesday's Wall Street Journal reported.
A federal investigation into cruise-control problems is underway in an estimated 3.7 million Ford F-150s, Ford Expeditions and Lincoln Navigators, auto safety regulators said Wednesday.
Driving to work can be extremely stressful -- and unhealthy. A stress-management expert tells six ways to calm down and protect your sanity.
General Motors Corp. has repeatedly delayed reporting vehicle defects that could result in recalls, government regulators said in public documents provided by the Center for Auto Safety, a safety advocacy group.
Q. We followed your advice and bought a 2004 Acura MDX at a discount. The manual suggests using premium gasoline. Do I really have to pour the high-priced stuff into this car?
Ford's new Five Hundred sedan earned the best possible score of five stars for front and side impact protection for occupants in all seating positions, according to new test results of 2005 models released Tuesday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Federal safety regulators Thursday demanded that DaimlerChrysler recall up to 600,000 vehicles from two of the most popular lines on the road, the 4x4 Dodge Durango and the four-wheel drive Dodge Dakota pickup, due to problems with front-end ball joints.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration passed two new regulations this week designed to make car seats safer.
General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. are expanding the use of anti-rollover technology on their popular sport/utility models, addressing a major safety risk for the vehicles.
Auto tires degrade with age, even if they are never used. So an auto safety consulting firm has petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require that all tires, like milk, have a clearly printed "born on" date.
The Chrysler 300 sedan and its corporate cousin, the Dodge Magnum wagon, received the highest safety rating for passenger cars in the first group of 2005 models tested by the government.
Electronic stability sensors seem to be effective in reducing rollovers and single-vehicle crashes, especially in SUVs, safety regulators said Thursday.
Federal auto safety regulators proposed new rules Wednesday requiring automakers to include a system to gauge tire pressure on all new cars.
The federal government is again looking at why the Honda CR-V compact sport/utility vehicle sometimes catches fire after an initial oil change, according to a published report.
U.S. auto safety regulators introduced a rule Monday requiring automakers to install safer power window switches in all models within five years in a move to prevent injuries to children.
Widely dispersed populations connected by narrow two-lane highways. That's a recipe for dangerous driving, according to a simple examination of state-by-state traffic fatality counts as reported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. More densely populated states have fewer traffic deaths per 100,000 population.
Widely dispersed populations connected by narrow two-lane highways are a recipe for dangerous driving, according to a simple look at state-by-state traffic fatality counts as reported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Last month, General Motors Saturn unit was forced to recall 246,000 of its VUE sport-utility vehicles, after the vehicle's rear suspension broke during rollover testing by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's new, more detailed, rollover rating still isn't telling you enough, some safety experts say.
The 4-wheel drive Chrysler Pacifica received the top ranking among all 2004 model year sport/utility vehicles that have been rated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's new, more detailed, roll-over ratings. The new rating system was announced today.
When you're choosing a new car, you've got to have priorities. You need performance. You need room to carry stuff. You need style. You need fuel economy. But there's one factor that should beat them all: safety.
If you're shopping for a new sport utility vehicle and you want to buy one that's less likely to roll over in a crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's five-star rollover resistance ratings can be helpful.
When National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released a new round of star ratings for rollover resistance last week, many media reports pointed out that SUVs had "improved" in their stability.
The Mazda RX-8 was the only car to get the top rating in a new government test for the risk of a rollover accident, but six of 16 light trucks tested tipped up on two wheels.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released crash test results for 2004 model-year four-door sedans. While most vehicles protected their crash-test dummy occupants relatively well, those with side airbags outperformed those without, taking the top spots in most categories.
The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Safety Administration released rollover ratings for 2004 sport utility vehicles today.
It's an all too familiar scene to anyone with a driver's license. You're cruising along, maybe too relaxed, and it happens: A patch of ice, an unexpected puddle, whatever, and the car fishtails. Yo...
Unless you inhale two packs a day, getting in a car may be the biggest risk you regularly take. More than 42,000 people died on the nation's highways in 2001 (14% of them pedestrians and bicyclists...
Though most car safety innovations--from windshield wipers to center, high-mounted brake lights--have made road travel less hazardous, the unequivocal leader of the safety pack is the humble seat b...
Car buyers place a lot of faith in new technology that's supposed to make driving safer. But even innovations that seem to work may have nasty unintended consequences. Here are three--all costly, a...
Car buyers place a lot of faith in new technology that's supposed to make driving safer. But even innovations that seem to work may have nasty unintended consequences.
I love winding roads, pretzel-shaped turns, and the cars built to safely speed through them. That's probably why I've never been a fan of sport-utility vehicles. Turns out those gas-guzzling land c...
We've told you how to make your car as safe as possible by doing maintenance and spotting trouble signs. But how does your car really measure up when it comes to safety? In the tables on pages 153 ...
The image of Ford Explorers mangled after their Firestone tires failed is a stark reminder that danger still lurks behind the wheel. But as the confusion over the Firestone recall shows, it has bec...
When it comes to cars, you may have strong opinions on Fords vs. Chevys or the merits (or evils) of minivans and sport utilities. But few people have any convictions, not to mention knowledge, abou...
Last month, when we rated 90 cars, trucks and vans for safety, we told you that side air bags provide valuable protection in a crash. Now the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ...
Twenty years ago, U.S. auto industry executives, convinced that customers didn't really care about a car's safety record, were fond of saying "safety doesn't sell." What a difference two decades ma...
It's hard to imagine gentlemen denying a civil request from a polite older lady, but that's what kept happening to Esther Burns. The mother of five grown children, she lives with her husband near B...
AS A YOUNG MAN, Harry Pearce dreamed of piloting F-101s but washed out of flight training at the U.S. Air Force Academy because he was colorblind. Grudgingly, he became a trial lawyer. Today, at 50...
Study the list of this year's car-seat recalls on page 26 very carefully. You could be strapping your youngster into a seat that's far from safe because of, say, a wobbly latch or belts. Since 1982...
Valerie Howard believes in air bags. Last May she was driving alone from her home near Fort Lauderdale to her mother's when another driver ran a red light and smashed into the left front fender of ...
Gasoline is cheap and lives are not, so one of these days we will surely get rid of the infamous CAFE -- the ''corporate average fuel economy'' standards. Your servant has been ranting about the st...
''I do not want to pretend to an excess of virtue or public spiritedness,'' wrote Chairman Gerald Greenwald of Chrysler Motors, instantly alerting readers of his article in the New York Times to th...
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