2006
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Toyota announced yesterday that it would conduct a voluntary recall of 133,000 Highlander Hybrid and Lexus RX400h crossover utility vehicles. The affected vehicles cover model years 2006 through 2010 for the Highlander, and 2006 through 2008 for the RX. Both vehicles share a platform and use the same powertrain. The recall will fix transistors in the hybrids’ inverter assemblies, which Toyota says can “experience heat damage due to variations in characteristics of the transistors’ parallel circuits.” Toyota says the malfunctioning inverters will cause warning lights on...
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Honda Wins Round In Long-Running Hybrid Gas-Mileage LawsuitThe long-running saga of Heather Peters versus Honda Motor Company has apparently come to an end after a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge overturned a previously awarded small claims judgement in Peters’ favor. Peters had been successful in pursuing her case against Honda, with a lesser court...
Kurt Ernst -
Honda Civic Hybrid Gas Mileage Class Action OK, Says Attorneys General
When 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid owner Heather Peters took Honda to Small Claims Court for what she said was misleading and unachievable gas mileage claims, the world looked on with interest. Not everyone thought Peters would win. But when she did -- to the tune of nearly $10,000 in damages --...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Woman Wins Suit Against Honda For Low Civic Hybrid Gas Mileage
If you buy a new car but can’t get anywhere near the gas mileage the automaker says you should, can you sue them for misleading you? For Heather Peters -- former attorney and owner of a 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid -- the answer is a resounding yes. At the Torrance Small Claims Court in California...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Honda Civic Hybrid Gas Mileage Case Heads To Small Claims Court
When you buy a new car, you’ll probably use manufacturers’ own gas mileage estimates alongside the official Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fuel economy database to help you choose which car will be best for you. Any of these gas mileage figures -- whether official or not -- can...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Recall Alert: 2006-07 Honda Civic Hybrids Need Drivetrain Fix
Something popped into my head recently when I thought of recalls; it is a verse from a popular Salt-n-Pepa song modified. “Yo, Pep, I don't think they're gonna play this on the radio. And why not? Everybody has recalls.” And no truer words have been spoken and not even manufacturers...
Jonathan McGrew -
While Toyota clearly hopes the worst of its recall problems are behind it, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a new investigation into an older Toyota vehicle. On February 15, the NHTSA opened an investigation into 32 complaints of engine stalling in 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid sport-utility vehicles. Of those, 21 occurred at speeds above 40 mph, and 26 of the vehicles wouldn't restart or had to be towed to a dealership. All but one of the complaints were filed in the last year, which the agency called "an apparent increasing trend." No accidents or injuries were...
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Nation-E Reveals All-Electric HUMMER H1 'Angel Car'
The HUMMER H1 is often the vehicle people picture first when they think of the most environmentally unfriendly thing on four wheels. So what better vehicle to demonstrate the diversity and flexibility of the electric car revolution than one of its main antagonists? That’s exactly what the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Ford, Mazda and Honda Make Best Back-to-School Cars List
Popular Small Cars Make the Exclusive List
Jonathan McGrew -
California HOV-Lane Stickers For Hybrids: Worth $1,200 To $1,500
Imagine a special sticker that let you use those high-occupancy vehicle lanes, zipping past stop-and-go rush hour traffic, blissfully alone in your car. If you live in California and were one of 85,000 lucky hybrid owners, you know exactly what I'm talking about. In 2005, California decided to open...
John Voelcker -
2009 MINI Cooper Clubman: Will You Rock One in 2009?
The MINI stretches out for its consumer legs.
Jonathan McGrew -
Honda Insight Revealed
Honda's Insight hybrid was revealed at NAIAS today and is expected to arrive at a dealership near you in April. The Insight uses a 1.3-liter SOHC aluminum-alloy i-VTEC engine, a continuously variable automatic transmission and integrated motor assist hybrid technology to achieve a U.S. EPA...
Robert Scardino
