Here’s a very regional food recall that provides us with a very universal lesson about the inter-connected nature of our food system. You may remember the recall announced shortly before Christmas of the entire 2014 output of Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream. That was bad enough for the company and for ice cream lovers alike, but Snoqualmie supplied dairy to other ice cream makers, which now must recall their 2014 output and sanitize their facilities. [More]
Transportation & Infrastructure
GM Will Use OnStar To Zap Coupons Into Your Car
By 1.5.15
OnStar is General Motors’ in-car information service that does everything for you from call for help when it detects an accident to offering the kind of information and directions that most people now get from our smartphones. Now GM has a new offering to tempt new GM owners to subscribe to OnStar: special location-based coupons beamed right to their vehicles. [More]
Airlines Hopefully To Break Guitars Less Often As Rule About Instruments As Carry-Ons Goes Into Effect
By 1.2.15
A musician’s instrument is a precious thing, in both senses of the word: they can be both riotously expensive, and also deeply loved. Airlines, however, have a bad track record of treating instruments less well than they deserve, by losing or wrecking them. The obvious solution — keep it with you, on board, in the passenger cabin — hasn’t always met with a positive response from the airlines, but now it’s official: you are, indeed, allowed to keep your instrument with you so that the airline can’t break it. [More]
General Motors Recalls 83,572 Trucks And SUVs For Ignition Switch Problems
By 1.2.15
General Motors’ Recallapalooza of 2014 now extends into 2015, with the company announcing yet another batch of vehicles recalled due to a possible ignition switch defect. Yes, the defect that caused cars to abruptly lose power and has caused 42 deaths that we know of. GM has recalled 83,572 Chevrolet, GMC, and Cadillac trucks and SUVs, but says that only about 500 of them potentially have the ignition lock defect. They just don’t know which ones. [More]
2014: By The Numbers
By 12.31.14
2014 was a record-setting year in an enormous variety of ways, both good and bad. As we wrap up and head into 2015, here’s a look at what happened, and what we learned, in the 2014 that was. [More]
Early Lawsuits Regarding GM Ignition Switch Defect Often Fell Through Cracks In The Court System
By 12.30.14
Since General Motors began recalling millions of vehicles for defective ignition switches earlier this year, several reports have surfaced that show the car maker and federal regulators knew of the deadly issue but failed to address it. While they almost certainly dropped the ball, a new report shows that the country’s legal system also failed to protect consumers by creating an environment in which legitimate lawsuits involving deadly crashes of affected GM vehicles fell through the cracks for nearly a decade. [More]
Going Out On New Year’s Eve? Plan Ahead So You Don’t Get Hit By Surge Prices
By 12.30.14
Don’t want to be like that person shocked to find she’s paid out a huge chunk of change the night before due to Uber’s surge pricing? Start the New Year out right and make a plan to avoid those fee hikes, before you hit the bubbly and decide money is immaterial. Your 2015 self will thank you for making the right choice, I promise. [More]
Takata President, COO Steps Down To “Unify” Response To Massive Airbag Issues
By 12.24.14
Takata Corp., the auto parts supplier behind the airbags responsible for more than 20 million vehicle recalls, is apparently taking steps to “unify” its response to the massive safety issue by replacing its president and COO. [More]
Los Angeles Mulling Idea Of Uber-Like App To Make Taxi Industry More Competitive
By 12.23.14
Two weeks after Los Angeles and San Francisco sued Uber for an array of issues, one of the cities is mulling the idea of making their own taxi system more like the ride-sharing service with a mobile app that would allow customers to hail and pay their fare with the press of a button. [More]
Today In Sad Food News: 80,000 Pounds Of Bacon Recalled For Misbranding
By 12.23.14
Let’s all pour out a little bacon grease on the ground for our fallen pork comrades, delicious bits of savory umami that will never reach the lips of consumers: More than 80,000 pounds of bacon have been recalled after a Florida company says the products were misbranded. [More]
Keurig Recalls 7.2 Million MINI Plus Coffee Machines For Burn Concerns
By 12.23.14
After receiving around 200 reports — including 90 cases involving burn-related injuries — of hot liquid overflowing from Keurig MINI Plus coffee makers, the company has issued a recall of more than 7 million of the machines in North America. [More]
BMW Doesn’t Like Being The Last One Standing, Issues Nationwide Recall Of Cars With Defective Takata Airbags
By 12.22.14
Being the last one in line isn’t always the best feeling. That may have been the case for BMW after it was the last automaker to not issue a nationwide recall of vehicles equipped with Takata-produced airbags that may spew shrapnel at passengers upon deployment. Now, bowing to pressure from federal regulators, the manufacturer plans to recall some 140,000 cars from across the United States. [More]
Fiat Chrysler Expands Takata Airbag Recall To 3.3M Across The United States
By 12.22.14
After months of pushing back, Fiat Chrysler is finally following the lead of other major automakers. Bowing to pressure from federal regulators, the company is massively expanding their recall of vehicles with potentially defective Takata airbags that have been linked to at least five deaths so far.
Tesla Launching Battery Swap Pilot Program For Some Model S Owners Next Week
By 12.19.14
While many electric car owners love being gas-free, the time-consuming process of recharging a vehicle can be a bit of a setback. So to cut down on that lengthy process, Tesla says it’ll be starting a pilot program next week that will allow some drivers to swap out their battery packs in just a few minutes. [More]
Chrysler Recalls 257,000 Dodge Ram Trucks Because Axle Failures Can Be Dangerous
By 12.19.14
We may not know everything there is to know about the inner-workings of automobiles, but we’ve covered enough recalls to know that a properly working driveshaft is a pretty important part of a car. For that reason, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced the recall of nearly 257,000 Dodge Ram pickups. [More]
Uber Agrees To Suspend Service In Portland For 3 Months
By 12.19.14
Marking the first time the ride-sharing company has voluntarily agreed to suspend service in a city it’s already established in, Uber has agreed to pull its drivers from the road in Portland for three months as part of a deal with the mayor to work on new regulations. [More]
Report: Envoy Air, ExpressJet More Likely To Lose Your Bags; Virgin, Frontier Least Likely
By 12.18.14
Each time I check my suitcase before hopping a flight, I say a little prayer that my things will make to my final destination. Luckily for me, I’ve had few issues with checked baggage (knock on wood), but thousands of other passengers haven’t been so fortunate. In fact, a new report from the U.S. Department of Transportation reveals that more than 1.6 million consumers have filed mishandled baggage reports in the first nine months of 2014. So, is there one airline that’s more apt to lose your luggage? Probably. [More]
Uber Reportedly Revamping Security, Won’t Say Exactly What It’s Doing
By 12.18.14
Following several accusations of Uber drivers behaving horrendously and a lawsuit regarding the company’s vetting processes for potential vehicle operators, the ride-sharing company is reportedly trying to make it up to future customers by revamping their focus on safety – although the company failed to provide many specifics. [More]
