Consumer Reports has put together a list of the quickest depreciating new cars so that you bargain hunters can snatch up a lightly used car for a good price. In case you weren’t aware, new cars take a big hit in depreciation in the first few years of ownership — a smart buyer lets someone else pay that “new car” tax.
Transportation & Infrastructure
Really Creepy Ads Killed The Electric Car
By 2.4.09
I watched the Who Killed The Electric Car documentary last night and was thunderstruck by the “ad” that GM made when California made them make electric cars against their will. If you want to sell a car, you put a hot person in it and shoot them skidding at high speeds across desert plains. This was like trailer for a sequel to The Ring.
Find If Your Kid's Toys Got Recalled
By 1.26.09
Want to know if your kid’s toys got recalled? The Parents.com Toy and Product Recall finder shows you. Just enter the name, brand, or model number, or search by category. For this task, at least, it’s more More organized and prettier than Google.
Don't Worry, Chrysler Will Still Be Paying To Put Their Cars In Terminator Movies
By 1.23.09
Despite taxing $4 billion in emergency aid from the U.S. government, Chrysler’s product placement deals are not in danger. Phew.
Chrysler Buys Ads Thanking You For Tax Money, You Get Pissed, Chrysler Censors You
By 1.22.09
Here’s a sad little saga. After convincing our government that it was responsible enough and commercially viable enough to deserve a multi-billion-dollar bailout, Chrysler spent some of the money taking out full page ads in The Wall Street Journal and USAToday, thanking America for its money. They also posted these ads proudly on their blog. The reaction from actual Americans was, um, harsh.
Your Car Is Used. Should GM Still Be Responsible For A Mistake It Made In The Factory?
By 1.22.09
At what point is an auto manufacturer freed from all responsibility for the car it makes and sells? Griffin says it’s almost certain that the incorrect body control module (BCM) was inserted at the factory, and that GM’s mistake cost him $459 to fix. GM says the former owner (Griffin’s friend) must have swapped out BCMs and therefore it’s “out of our control,” but Griffin argues that’s pretty much impossible.
By 1.16.09
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Bad news! This uterus has been recalled because it presents a potential choking hazard. [iheartguts.com]
500,000 Stork Craft Cribs Recalled
By 1.16.09
More killer cribs are on the loose, this time from Stork Craft. The CPSC has issued a recall for all Stork Craft cribs “with manufacturing and distribution dates between May 2000 and November 2008,” because the metal support brackets can crack and break, creating a suffocation danger. If you own one, call Stork Craft at 866-361-3321 to order a free bracket replacement kit, or click here.
Airline Fines Fall Even As Complaints Rise
By 1.13.09
Claiming it had better things to do, the Department of Transportation issued only $1.2 million in airline fines last year, even as consumer complaints over fees and delays continued to rise. Five years ago, the agency issued over $8 million in fines, but now, they say they’re too busy working on “consumer rulemaking” and “consumer forums” to ensure that airlines honor consumer protection laws.
Whoops: Ford Might Need A Bailout After All
By 1.12.09
Ford has been busy marketing itself as America’s Healthiest Automaker — but Bloomberg says that the company may need a bailout after all.
The 10 Most Reliable Car Brands VS Your Preconceived Notions
By 1.12.09
Consumer Reports just did a study about car brand perceptions, so we thought we’d compare the top 10 most highly perceived brands to their list of the most reliable car brands.
Quest Says Nearly 10% Of Its Vitamin D Tests Were Inaccurate
By 1.9.09
Last October, Quest Diagnostics contacted “thousands of doctors” around the country to notify them that one or more of their patients might have received “questionable” results on vitamin D tests performed over the past two years. It’s offering free retests to anyone who was affected.
Graphic: Why GM Will Still Fail
By 1.8.09
Not that you necessarily need convincing that GM is doomed no matter how much cash is thrown at it, but here’s a cool graphic that shows all of the auto company’s problems as piles of shipping containers. The designer points out that “many aspects of this graphic can apply to the rest of the Big Three but I focused on GM since they are in the most dire position.”
By 1.7.09
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Seemingly invulnerable Toyota will shut down its Japanese factories for 11 days as it too deals with the global economic slowdown. Previously, the company had been unable to keep up with demand for its fuel efficient cars. [NYT]
6 New CPSC Recalls
By 12.24.08
The CPSC announced 6 recalls today: some Foursquare jackets, Hallmark Jumbo Snow Globes, Gardner’s Supply Company Candle-Powered Carousels, Munrie “Newport Rubbed Black” Cribs and Furniture, Woodstock Percussion Toy Drums, and Atomic Skis Ski Bindings.
Toyota Will Lose Money For The First Time In 70 Years, Unplugs Electric Hand Dryers
By 12.23.08
Last fiscal year, Toyota made $28 billion dollars in profit. This year? Yeah. Not so much.
Auto Executives Will Have To Give Up Their Private Jets
By 12.19.08
One of the conditions of the auto bailout is the elimination of private corporate jets. Guess they probably shouldn’t have flown them to Washington to ask for a tax payer bailout. Whoopsie!
Bush Approves Auto Industry Bailout
By 12.19.08
President Bush has approved a $17.4 billion auto bailout, with $13.4 billion in emergency loans to prevent the collapse of GM and Chrysler and another $4 billion to be handed out in February.
