A bailed-out, bankrupt car company VS one dealing with its first major crisis. The two companies have a long history together… in fact up until recently, they operated a plant in California. Both are unpopular right now… but which one is worse? [More]
Transportation & Infrastructure
Ford Partners With Microsoft For Recharging Electric Vehicles
By 3.31.10
Earlier today, Ford announced that it’s going to be the first car manufacturer to employ Microsoft’s Hohm energy management system when it begins rolling out its line of electric and hybrid electric vehicles over the next two years. [More]
Recall Roundup: Step Away From The Pepper Edition
By 3.31.10
Salmonella in the pepper! Salmonella in the hydrolyzed vegetable protein! Salmonella everywhere! Oh yeah, and some other stuff was recalled too. [More]
Ford Agrees To Sell Volvo For $1.8 Billion To Zhejiang Geely
By 3.29.10
They always say that cars are the worst investment, since they almost always depreciate in value. But Ford Motor Co. learned the hard way that this holds true for car companies as well. They bought Volvo for $6.45 billion in 1999, only to sell it 11 years later for $1.8 billion. [More]
Lawyers Begin Scrambling For Position In Toyota Lawsuits
By 3.26.10
More than 100 lawyers from all around the country packed into a San Diego courtroom yesterday in an attempt to stake their claim to the lion’s share of any settlements that come from the multitude of federal lawsuits filed against Toyota in recent weeks. [More]
Recalled Baby Gates Failed To Prevent Plummeting Babies
By 3.25.10
Evenflo Top-of-Stairâ„¢ Plus Wood Gates are supposed to stop your baby from plummeting down the stairs. Unfortunately, they do not do this, so they have been recalled. [More]
How Does Brake Override Technology Stop Runaway Cars?
By 3.24.10
The recent fuss over Toyota’s recalls has brought a lot of attention to a previously rather boring car feature: brake override. It wasn’t a very sexy feature until we began reading about throttles gone rogue, taking drivers on a terrifying ride. Brake override, and its absence on the affected Toyota models, became very interesting all of a sudden. But how does it work? Does it really work? Our sister publication Consumer Reports has a test track and some Toyotas lying around, so they set out to find out. [More]
1 Million Infantino Slings Recalled After 3 Babies Suffocate
By 3.24.10
The CPSC announced today that the The Infantino “SlingRider,”– a soft fabric baby carrier with a padded shoulder strap — has been recalled after three reports of deaths that occurred in these slings in 2009; a 7-week-old infant in Philadelphia, Pa.; a 6-day-old infant in Salem, Ore.; and a 3-month-old infant in Cincinnati, Ohio. [More]
Fake Toyota CEO: "From Now On No Brakes!"
By 3.24.10
Uh-oh, (fake) Mr. Toyoda is mad. He went on Letterman to call the latest runaway Toyota report a hoax, and he’s going to get revenge for this blatant attempt to shame him. “From now on, Toyota no brakes!” Also, he’s apparently upset about Jay Leno for some reason. All are punish-ed!
Fake Toyota CEO Yells at David Letterman, Mocks Jay Leno [Gawker.TV] (Thanks to GitEmSteveDave!)
Pay Czar Cuts Exec Pay 15% At AIG, GM And Others
By 3.24.10
Kenneth Feinberg, better known as the Obama administration’s pay czar, announced yesterday that he’d cut salaries on top executives at 5 companies that are still using bailout cash. [More]
Document Shows Toyota Knew Of Camry Acceleration Issues In 2002
By 3.23.10
A newly uncovered document shows that Toyota alerted dealers to complaints from some drivers of 2002 Camrys about “surging during light throttle input at speeds between 38-42 mph” and that the resolution to the issue is an electronic, not mechanical issue. [More]
Chrysler Bringing Electric Fiat To U.S. In 2012
By 3.22.10
Chrysler announced today that it plans on releasing an electric car for the U.S. market in 2012. The vehicle will be based on the Fiat 500EV, which Chrysler and its controlling owner, Italian car maker Fiat, showed off at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this year. [More]
Consumer Reports Picks Top Cars In 10 Categories
By 3.22.10
In the April issue of Consumer Reports, they announce their top picks for vehicles in 10 separate categories, from Family Sedan to Green Car to Pickup Truck to Best Car Overall. This year, that title belongs to the Lexus LS 460L. [More]
NHTSA: No Evidence Of Braking In NY Prius Crash
By 3.18.10
Looks like those who called “driver error” on the Prius that slammed into a stone wall in upstate New York a couple weeks back might have reason to boast. An e-mail from NHTSA seems to negate the driver’s claims that she attempted to brake during the incident. [More]
Police Report Supports Runaway Prius Driver's Story
By 3.17.10
The Associated Press is reporting that a newly released police report confirms details given by the driver of the runaway Prius, but does not address inconsistencies between the driver’s story and information provided by Toyota. [More]
Simulate Driving A Runaway Toyota
By 3.17.10
This website professionally simulates what it’s like to drive a Toyota. Includes authentic screams of terror.
(Thanks to thespatulaoflove!)
Video: How To Stop A Speeding Prius If You're F****** Stupid
By 3.16.10
This masked video troll is the zeitgeist. His 40-odd f-bomb-fueled demonstration of how to stop a Prius captures the mood among a swath of consumers that runaway Toyotas are just the fault of “stupid” drivers. Nevermind that the driver of an out-of-control Lexus did both the “power off” and “put it in neutral” tricks he shows, potentially pointing to an electronics system issue, and it didn’t help. “Get your head out of your ass, stop thinking about saving the planet, and figure out how to drive your car,” he admonishes. Very NSFW, cursing. [More]
Court Overturns $18 Million Verdict Against Ford
By 3.16.10
Yesterday, a court in South Carolina overturned an $18 million verdict against Ford stemming from a fatal 1999 incident involving a Ford Explorer. Their reasoning behind the reversal — an expert who testified about the vehicle’s cruise control system apparently knew nothing about cruise control systems. [More]
