Police in Southlake, Tex. are investigating whether a fatal automobile accident could have been caused by the same mechanical issue that led to the recall of 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles and multiple fatal accidents in the U.S., including one involving a California Highway Patrol officer and his family. In the accident on Saturday morning, police say that the vehicle ran a stop sign, hit a tree and a fence, and drove into a pond. Two people were killed, and two were injured. [More]
Transportation & Infrastructure
Ford To Sell Volvo To China's Zhejiang Geely
By 12.23.09
Ford has reached a deal to sell Volvo to Zhejiang Geely, a Chinese company that first started making cars just 11 years ago. The terms of the deal weren’t announced, but Ford’s take is estimated to be about $2 billion, a far cry from the $6 billion the company paid to buy Volvo in 1999. [More]
Tarmac Imprisonment Limited To 3 Hours
By 12.21.09
Airlines must let passengers stuck in airplanes stranded on the tarmac get off after 3 hours, the Transportation Department today ordered. They’re also now only allowed to starve you for 2 hours, after which they must serve pizza or a reasonable facsimile. Toilets must be functional during the entire time as well. [More]
Saab Is Dead
By 12.18.09
The final attempt to sell money-losing-jet-car-maker Saab has failed, says GM. The brand will be discontinued, which makes the country of Sweden really sad. [More]
GM Reveals Secret Project It Developed With Bailout Money
By 12.17.09
Finally, the truth is revealed: this is clearly where the bailout money went. Below, watch a Chevy Volt promotion song-and-dance-spectacular performed earlier this month at the LA Auto Show. [More]
Pretty Much All Roman And Roll-Up Blinds Recalled
By 12.15.09
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Window Covering Safety Council have announced a “recall to repair” of all Roman shades and roll-up shades, after multiple reports of deaths and near strangulations in recent years. If you’ve got kids in your house and you use either type of window covering, visit www.windowcoverings.org or call 800-506-4636 to receive a free kit that will let you retrofit the shades and blinds with clips. [More]
State Of California Doesn't Know How To Accept $14 Fee
By 12.12.09
Reader Justin may have discovered the real reason for California’s fiscal crisis. He owes the DMV $14, but says that the DMV doesn’t seem to want his money. Which is strange, since this is the opposite of how most people think of the DMV. Maybe they don’t have any lines, either. [More]
Baby Hammock Recalled After Two Deaths
By 12.8.09
Maybe those hamsters are okay, but these Amby Baby Motion hammock beds are not. Two infants have died–one in June, the other in August–from suffocation, prompting Amby Baby and the CPSC to issue a recall notice. You can make the hammock safe to use after repairing it with a free kit, which you can order directly from Amby Baby. [More]
41% Of Sudden Acceleration Complaints Are Toyotas. That's A Lot.
By 12.7.09
Here’s a beauty contest you don’t want to win: 41% of the 2008 model safety complaints about “sudden acceleration” problems were for Toyota and Lexus models. That would be the same complaint lodged by that California family this summer when they crashed into a highway barrier at 120 mph when their loaner car wouldn’t stop speeding up, if they were still alive to make it. [More]
Consumerist Videodrome #2: The "New Moon" Felons
By 12.7.09
Is loving New Moon a crime? It is, if you accidentally tape it during your sister’s surprise birthday party at the movie theater. Plus, how you will end up paying for Hulu after the Comcast/NBC merger, Oscar Meyer shaved meat, subprime loan gangstas, and a pacifier you might choke on. Now that we have a video show, what should my signoff be? Leave your thoughts in the comments. [More]
Diamond Cat Food Recalled For Thiamine Deficiency
By 12.1.09
Diamond Pet Foods has recalled certain bags of dry cat food following 21 reports of health problems in cats. Select batches of Premium Edge Finicky Adult Cat and Premium Edge Hairball do not contain enough thiamine, which is an essential nutrient for cats. Without it, they could develop thiamine deficiency. If untreated, this disorder could result in death, says the AP. [More]
Continental, ExpressJet Fined $100,000 For Tarmac Delay Incident
By 11.30.09
Back in August, Continental and its partner, ExpressJet kept 47 passengers, including some babies, on a plane for 11 hours with only some pretzels to eat. A few days later, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that he was looking in to the issue. Last week, the DOT announced that the Aviation Enforcement Office (AEO) had fined Continental Airlines and ExpressJet Airlines $100,000 for their involvement in the incident. [More]
2.1 Million Cribs Recalled, Including 150,000 From Fisher Price
By 11.24.09
Following four deaths, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced one of the largest recalls of cribs in the agency’s history: 2.1 million cribs manufactured by Stork Craft, including roughly 150,000 sold under the Fisher Price brand. As in other recent recalls, this one is based on problems with drop-side cribs entrapping babies and seriously injuring or killing them. [More]
Customer Finds Dead Mouse In Toyota
By 11.23.09
Greg was replacing the speakers in his 2003 Camry and uncovered a stinky little tomb in the rear of the car. He thinks it must have happened at the plant, but I can’t tell. Who wants to weigh in on whether the mouse tried to build a nest, or whether Toyota used mouse-enhanced stuffing on the assembly line? Oh, there are pics after the jump, but I made one of them less disturbing by adding a little sweater.
Vick's Sinex Nasal Spray Recalled Due To Bacterial Contamination
By 11.20.09
The FDA says P&G is voluntarily recalling three lots of its Vicks Sinex nasal spray in three countries: the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom after finding the bacteria B. cepacia in a small amount of product. There have been no reports of illness. However, the bacteria could cause serious infections for individuals with a compromised immune system, or those with chronic lung conditions, such as cystic fibrosis. B. cepacia poses little medical risk to healthy individuals.
New York State Holds License Plate Fundraiser
By 11.15.09
As part of an attempt to make up a budget shortfall, New York State is holding a huge fundraiser. No, not a bake sale: starting in April 2010, the state is forcing all car and tractor-trailer owners in the state to buy new license plates when they renew their registrations. And not just any license plates. Ugly license plates.
How Epic Bureaucracy Led To GM's Doom
By 11.13.09
Have you ever wondered how a profit-seeking entity could have possibly produced the Pontiac Aztek? The answer lies in GM’s century-old bureaucracy. Like all good bureaucracies, it helped to stifle innovation, squash dissent, and perpetuate bad ideas.
