Car Safety
-
The rear hinges of the 2011 and 2012 Chevrolet Corvette may fail during a crash, prompting the NHTSA to issue a recall.
-
2010-12 Audi A3 TDI Recalled For Fuel Line Fire RiskAudi's latest recall of the 2012-2012 A3 TDI is unusual, not in that it's a diesel or an Audi, but because of the reason: an odd confluence of engine RPM and fuel line pressure that can cause a leak. The problem is limited to the VW-sourced 2.0-liter TDI engine in 7,335 A3 TDIs built between...
Nelson Ireson -
Mazda First Automaker To Implement Ultra-High Tensile SteelMazda will be the first automaker to implement the use of 1,800 megapascal (approximately 261,000 psi) ‘ultra-high tensile steel’ in a mainstream vehicle with the launch of its new 2012 Mazda CX-5 crossover early next year. Grouped under its range of new SKYACTIV fuel saving...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2012 Range Rover Evoque: Certainly Not Camera ShyOrder the Surround Camera System in the 2012 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque, and you’ll get five cameras, a reverse-sensing system, and a pretty sweet interface
Bengt Halvorson -
Tire Tread Scanners The Next Wave Of Traffic Enforcement Tech?Officials in the UK are currently investigating the benefits of new tire tread scanners built into the road and designed to detect illegal tread depths as vehicles pass over it. The technology, which relies on a series of high-speed cameras and leasers, was developed by German firm ProContour and...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
GM First With Front Center AirbagGM has announced plans to launch the industry’s first front center airbag, designed to help protect drivers and front passengers in far-side impact crashes where the affected occupant is on the opposite, non-struck side of the vehicle. The tubular airbag is also designed to provide restraint...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
If you think your car is sometimes a little slow to react when you turn a corner or push pedal to the metal, some future technology from Nissan might be right up your street. In-car safety and technology systems have got pretty advanced recently. You can buy cars that adjust their speed according to traffic on the freeway, brake to avoid pedestrians and warn you when you're drifting in your lane. They can brake harder in emergencies and help wake you if you appear to be drifting off. They're all reactive rather than proactive technologies though, which is where Nissan's research, in...
-
2012 Audi A6 Awarded IIHS Top Safety PickThe 2012 Audi A6 is one of the safest vehicles in its class thanks to a host of technological features, including standard electronic stability control (ESC).
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2011 BMW 328i And 335i xDrive Models Recalled For Loose Driveshaft BoltsIncorrectly torqued front driveshaft attachment bolts have led to the recall of 2011 BMW 328i and 335i xDrive models.
Kurt Ernst -
Mercedes Safety Systems Simulator At Frankfurt: We "Crashed"Modern racing videogames are getting pretty good these days, with handling and graphics capabilities that allow for a pretty realistic driving experience. It's also cheaper than racing for real, not to mention safer - "Life has no 'reset' button", they often say. We were glad of that little detail...
Antony Ingram -
2002-2005 BMW 3-Series Recalled For Faulty Tail LightsThis has been a bad week for BMW recalls. Having just recalled its 2009 X5 xDrive35d diesel model for a fuel heater fault, the automaker is now recalling certain 3-Series models from the 2002 to 2005 model years. The particular models including the 325i, 325xi, 330i and 330xi, of which there are...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2009 BMW X5 Diesel Recalled Due To Fuel Heater FaultIt’s not looking good for BMW X5 Diesel owners. Just a couple of months after the 2012 model was recalled due to a steering fault, a new recall has been issued on the 2009 BMW X5 xDrive35d by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) due to a potential fault with the heating...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Over the last few months the race to develop connected vehicles that "talk" to each other as they're driven along has picked up the pace, with several technology companies and carmakers developing systems to make our roads safer. Now, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is starting its own real-world trials of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) technology, beginning August 2012. The trial, known as The Safety Pilot, will gather data from 3,000 cars in Ann Arbor, Michigan over one year. The NHTSA will collect the data to determine what aspects of the information sent between...
-
2011-12 Porsche 911, 2012 Porsche Boxster, Cayman Models RecalledPorsche has announced a recall of certain 2011-12 Porsche 911, Boxster and Cayman models to repair a potentially defective seat belt anchor plate.
Kurt Ernst -
Thorium Powered Cars: A Million Miles Without RefuellingIt reads more like a 1950s space race vision of the future than a pragmatic 21st Century theory, but we could now be a step closer to driving a nuclear-powered car. In light of the recent events in Japan following the tsunami that caused meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant, and previous events...
Antony Ingram -
2009 Maserati Models Recalled For Suspension IssueA total 763 Maserati Quattroportes and GranTurismos from the 2009 model year are being recalled by the NHTSA due to a potential fault with their suspension systems.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
BMW Shows Off Its V2V Technology With 5 New VideosBack in May, we told you about new technology from BMW aimed at making left turns safer. Now, the company has uploaded a handful of videos showing that technology in motion, as well as other developments that could eventually make your commute more worry-free. All five of the tech developments...
Richard Read -
Two Corvettes Collide When One Driver Loses Control: VideoThis video shows just how susceptible high horsepower cars are to losing control.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The 2011-12 Audi R8 Spyder has been recalled for a fuel leak that could start a fire.
-
NHTSA Investigating Ford Mustang Over Erratic Manual TransmissionsMore than 26,000 Ford Mustangs from the 2011 and 2012 model years have been fitted with the potentially faulty six-speed manual gearbox.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Toyota Helps Old Drivers, Pedestrians With New Safety TechYour next car will almost certainly perform better than your last car, offer more features, greater comfort and more gadgets. It'll also be safer, but we've become so complacent with the safety of modern cars that we barely give it a second thought any more. Carmakers do though, and Toyota has...
Antony Ingram -
Government-Mandated Autonomous Cars: Science Fiction Or Coming Soon?The idea of an iRobot (the movie, not the book)-like future where only the renegades drive their own cars may be fast approaching. BMW's i range of cars offers some ready-for-prime-time autonomy, and VW's recent Auto Pilot demo shows just how close we already are to production driverless cars...
Nelson Ireson -
Don't Trust Your Teen? Track Them With GM OnStar Family LinkIf you're trusting your teenage son or daughter with the car for the night it's nice to know that their journey has gone safely - or that they're actually going where they said they would. For that extra piece of mind GM is testing a new OnStar service called 'Family Link' that allows subscribers...
Antony Ingram -
GPS Racing: Over 7 Million Brits Try And Beat The Sat NavHow long will a journey take from point A to point B? To get the answer, many of us will punch the destination into our GPS satellite navigation devices which give us an estimated time of arrival (ETA). However, a new survey thinks that subconsciously trying to beat the displayed ETA could be...
Antony Ingram