Car Safety
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There are many good reasons to drive a hybrid car, but did you know that one of them is improved safety levels? It's true - according to data gathered by the Highway Loss Data Institute (via Automotive News), crashing in hybrid vehicles like the Honda Accord Hybrid or Toyota Highlander Hybrid is less likely to result in injury compared to an equivalent regular gasoline car. On average, the odds are 25 percent lower. Heavier still equals safer One major factor seems to be the extra weight that hybrids carry in batteries and electrical systems. At this point, safety begins to come down to...
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NHTSA To Treat Crashed Electric Cars With More Respect After Volt Blaze
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is considering adopting a new set of procedures for tow trucks and wrecking yards to follow when dealing with severely crashed electric cars. The new guidelines may be implemented after an incident in which a 2011 Chevrolet Volt caught fire...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Fire Marshal Says NC Garage Fire Started Away From Chevy Volt: Exclusive
The fire marshal investigating a Mooresville, NC, fire that engulfed a 2011 Chevrolet Volt electric car has concluded preliminarily that the car was not the source of the fire.
John Voelcker -
Plan On Crashing Your Plug-In Car? Volvo Will Keep You Safe
Cars of today are immeasurably safer than those even a decade ago, and manufacturers have been working very carefully to ensure that the different requirements of electric car construction don't mean taking a step back in safety. Volvo has always been known for safety and its plug-in cars are no...
Antony Ingram -
2012 Fiat 500 Minicar Named IIHS Top Safety Pick Despite Size
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has named the 2012 Fiat 500 minicar one of its Top Safety Picks despite the diminutive car's size.
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen, Audi Recall Clean-Diesel TDI Cars For Fuel Leak Problem
The Volkswagen Group 2.0-liter clean-diesel TDI engine has been fitted to quite a number of VW vehicles over the years, as well as the Audi A3 TDI. Now the company has announced a voluntary safety recall that applies to both Golf TDI models built from May 2009 to September 2011, and the more...
John Voelcker -
A few years ago the idea that mainstream european automakers would be focusing so much effort on minuscule electric urban runabouts would have been met with derision. But a few weeks after it unveiled its third generation two-seat urban concept vehicle at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show, Renault has announced the pricing, specification and ordering details for customers in Europe. But will cars like Renault Twizy, Audi Electric Urban Concept, Volkswagen Nils or Opel RAK e ever become popular? Will they ever make it to the U.S, or are they just too small and quirky to be taken seriously?...
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2012 Chevrolet Sonic Subcompact Named IIHS Top Safety Pick
The influential Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has designated the subcompact 2012 Chevy Sonic one of its Top Safety Picks.
John Voelcker -
2011 Honda CR-Z Hybrid Coupes With Manual Gearboxes Recalled
About 5,600 CR-Z hybrid coupes from the 2011 model year are being recalled to update the control software for their electric motor. The goal is to avert a rare condition under which the car could move in an unexpected direction if the driver doesn't apply the brakes before restarting after stalling...
John Voelcker -
2009 BMW X5 Diesel Recalled For Faulty Fuel-Filter Heater
Clean-diesel vehicles, a slowly growing segment of the market, unquestionably return higher fuel economy figures than their gasoline-engined counterparts. But they have their own set of issues, too, including recalls specific to some of the diesel engine components. The NHTSA has issued a recall...
John Voelcker -
Fatal G-Wiz Crash: Victim Was On Phone, Not Using Seatbelt
We brought you news last year of a horrific accident, in which a woman was killed when her G-Wiz neighborhood electric vehicle, a model not sold in the United States, was struck by another vehicle. An inquest into the accident has now ended and the verdict has been given as accidental death. Last...
Antony Ingram -
Nissan Leaf Scores 5-Star NHTSA Crash Safety Rating
The Nissan Leaf is the first and only electric car to be crash tested by the NHTSA and it has passed with flying colors.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Chinese media are reporting that an electric bus caught fire in Shanghai at noon on Monday. And this is apparently not the first such incident. A Reuters report indicates that at least one earlier incident has been reported in the Chinese press within the last three months. A local Shanghai blog, The Shanghaiist, showed photos of the burned bus. Reports conflict as to whether the bus was in service, or stationary and parked by the roadside, but no injuries were reported. The bus is one of a test fleet that uses ultra-capacitors to store energy from a network of charging points that top up the...
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2012 BMW X5 xDrive35d: Steering Recall For Clean-Diesel SUV
Almost 1,000 clean-diesel versions of the 2012 BMW X5 crossover will be recalled to replace a part that could cause the power steering to fail. Only the diesel model, known as the X5 xDrive35d, is affected. The X5 xDrive 35i and 50i versions with gasoline engines are not part of the recall...
John Voelcker -
What Would You Give Up For Higher Gas Mileage? Cash? Features? Safety?
It happens every time. Gas prices go up sharply, and new car buyers suddenly decide that gas mileage is important--and shop accordingly. With gas around $4 a gallon in many parts of the country, what would you trade for higher miles per gallon? Would you pay more? Would you buy a smaller car than...
John Voelcker -
2011 Chevy Volt Gets Five Stars For Overall Safety From NHTSA
Well, log another notch in the bedpost: One more safety myth--that electric cars will be more dangerous than regular ones in a crash--has now been slain. Five weeks ago, the Insurance Industry for Highway Safety (IIHS) gave top ratings for crash safety to both the 2011 Nissan Leaf and the 2011...
John Voelcker -
2001-2003 Toyota Prius Recall: Steering Nut On Early Hybrids
Toyota has issued a recall notice for its very earliest hybrids, the 2001 through 2003 Prius sedan models. The company will replace the pinion-shaft attachment nuts in the electric power steering box, which could loosen over time if the wheel is "repeatedly and strongly turned" to the full-lock...
John Voelcker -
IIHS Changes View Of Small Cars With Six Top Safety Pick Awards
Twenty years ago small cars were generally seen as low cost transportation that would generally only get you from point A to point B. Small cars have come a long way from that in today’s automotive market with manufacturers like Ford, Hyundai, Chevrolet, BMW and Audi just to name a few. Why...
Jonathan McGrew -
Good occupant safety can come in small packages—even those that get 40 mpg or more. That's one of the themes of the latest round of crash-test results and safety ratings released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Overall, there are now ten small-car and minicar models in the U.S. market that both earn the safety group's Top Safety Pick status and get EPA fuel economy ratings of at least 40 mph highway. In order to earn the Top Safety Pick accolade, the models need to have available stability control, get top 'good' ratings for frontal, side, and rear impact, and earn...
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Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf Get Top IIHS Crash-Safety Ratings
Among the many things that confuse or worry potential buyers of plug-in electric cars is whether they'll be safe. One concern is car washes or even deep pools of water, but another is whether the battery pack will be damaged or dangerous in an accident. Well, now you can chalk that last one off the...
John Voelcker -
Who Knew? A Car Battery Is the World's Most Recycled Product
A concern raised over upcoming electric-drive cars--the all-electric 2011 Nissan Leaf, the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, and the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid--is what happens to their lithium-ion battery packs once the car's life ends. Images of those battery packs tossed over cliffs or littering...
John Voelcker -
2011 Think City Two-Seat Electric Car Faces Third Recall
Dozens, even hundreds, of different models get recalled each year by their makers to address defects or potential problems. Most pass unnoticed, except to the owners who get letters in the mail asking them to bring their vehicle back to the dealer. But three recalls in as many months isn't a...
John Voelcker -
EXCLUSIVE: What Killed The Electric Car? For G-Wiz, Other Electric Cars
It’s been a mainstay of British eco-chic for nearly a decade, but the little Indian four-wheel ‘car’ which can be found buzzing around the streets of London will no longer be sold in the U.K. In an email earlier on today addressed to all G-Wiz owners Rudi Schogger, MD of...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Even Electric Cars Get Recalled: 2011 Think City Safety Notices
Recall notices are now a standard part of the automotive landscape. Last year's recall of almost 10 million Toyota and Lexus models only highlighted the fact that most vehicles get called back to dealers for minor upgrades or inspections to fix or avert potential defects. Despite their much smaller...
John Voelcker