We’ve received a follow-up email from Chuck, who has spent the better part of the week trying to determine why Progressive’s Roadside Assistance service—for which he pays an additional monthly fee on top of his normal insurance premium—sucks so badly that they’d leave a motorist stranded for 45 minutes on a busy Interstate on a weekend morning.
automobiles
Progressive Roadside Assistance Strands Lady On Roadside
By 10.9.07
According to a reader, Progressive—the insurance company that sends private detectives to secretly tape-record church support group meetings—took 45 minutes this past weekend to put a live person in contact with a woman who was stranded on a busy Interstate in Nashville after a tire blew out on her car. Eventually, a Tennessee Department of Transportation officer stopped and helped her.
Chrysler Recalls 300,000 Vehicles Due To Potential Braking Problem
By 9.19.07
Chrysler has announced a recall of over 300,000 vehicles due to a potential problem with the car’s ability to brake while coasting uphill.
4-Year-Old Leaps From Moving Car After It Was Repo'd With Him In It
By 9.11.07
We checked but couldn’t find a clause in the Fair Debt Collection Practices act that dealt with the legal implications of repossessing a SUV with a 4-year-old child inside of it, but we’re fairly sure it’s not really allowed.
Top 10 Most Frugal New Cars
By 9.10.07
Forbes magazine has released a list of the top 10 least expensive cars to own. The list is interesting because it takes into account things like depreciation and maintenance costs, rather than just listing some cheap-ass cars.
The Edsel Turns 50!
By 9.6.07
This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Ford Edsel, long considered the premier example of over-hyped commercial failure. New Coke has nothing on the Edsel!
Cars Cost Half Of A Family's Income
By 9.5.07
Bankrate is reporting that the average new car will cost half of the average family’s income. How depressing!
Ford Recalls 3.6 Million Vehicles
By 8.3.07
Ford has issued a recall of 3.6 million vehicles because of a defective “speed control deactivation switch system.” Ford or Lincoln/Mercury dealers will perform the repair free of charge to all affected vehicles.
Many SUV And Truck Headrests Suck, Don't Protect Against Injury From Rear Collisions
By 7.3.07
Why should you care? Because you’re more likely to need the protection of a headrest than you are an airbag. Rear collisions are common. The above painfully boring, yet awesome, video from the folks at the IIHS shows a failed test of a 2007 Dodge Nitro seat. (Hey, we like crash test dummies, ok?) You can see that the head is not supported from behind, which would cause the dummy to sustain neck injuries and have to wear one of those embarrassing neck brace things to school the next day.
Automakers Offer Unadvertised Incentives To Recent Graduates
By 6.23.07
Recent graduates shopping for a new car may be eligible for incentives offered by several automakers. The incentives are rarely advertised, unknown even to most dealers.
$4 Gas? So What? Sales of SUVs Up 25%
By 6.15.07
According to Bankrate sales of SUVs are up 25% from this time last year. Wait, weren’t we all buying Priuses because we can’t afford $4 gas? Nope.
Crash Test Your Car!
By 6.8.07
Ever wanted to see what your car would look like if a dummy drove it into a wall (a dummy other than the cousin who borrowed your car for a joyride)? Admit it, you think about it when you get a lousy trade-in price. Thankfully, there’s the Consumer Reports Crash Test videos, where you can see how your car will hold up against things like short concrete walls and other typical objects found along a highway.
UPDATE: Consumer Takes Sleazy Prius Salesman To Court
By 1.30.07
Angela Weigold writes in what’s new with her case against a dirtbag Prius salesman, James Gentile. This was a guy who, after the deal went raw, left multiple harassing phone messages daily, called Angela a “whore” and put her phone number on online escort websites.
UPDATE: Consumer Takes Sleazy Prius Salesman To Court
By 1.18.07
Angela Weigold writes in what’s new with her case against a dirtbag Prius salesman. This was a guy who, after the deal went raw, left multiple harassing phone messages daily, called Angela a “whore” and put her phone number on online escort websites:
Safest Cars For 2007
By 11.22.06
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a non-prof car safety testing group funded by auto insurers, released their 2007 top safety picks yesterday.
Consumer Takes Sleazy Prius Salesman To Court
By 10.31.06
An update on the Weingolds who are suing a Prius salesman, claiming he screwed them over on a sale and then proceeded to leave threatening messages on their answering machine.
