Defective Airbags and Alternators Lead to Two Separate FCA Recalls
Together, the two recalls affect a total of more than 1.3 million FCA vehicles
Two months ago, FCA issued a recall for more than 1.25 million Ram models due to a safety system error that was discovered in the vehicle. Today, the automaker announced a set of two recalls that roughly match the scope of that previous recall. More than 1.3 million FCA vehicles worldwide will be recalled due to […]
Recall Alert: Buick Recalls 800 Envision SUVs Due to a Head Restraint Installation Error
One of the fastest-selling vehicles in Buick’s current lineup is the Buick Envision. Last month, Envision sales were even up by 248.4%. Therefore, if you have bought one of these SUVs recently, then you are certainly not alone. With that said, you may want to look into a recent automotive recall that has been issued. […]
Recall Alert: FCA Recalls Nearly 297,000 Dodge Grand Caravans for Inadvertent Airbag Deployment
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has been having a string of bad luck recently in terms of vehicle recalls. A month ago, the automaker recalled more than 1.25 million Ram trucks to address a safety defect. Since then, the automaker has gone on to recall every single Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid model delivered so far, due to malfunctioning […]
Mazda Introduces Recall Information Center, So Please Get Your Car Fixed Already
Lately, it feels like we live in the era of the recall—we of course have the big four of the GM ignition switch recall, the Toyota accelerator recall, the Takata airbag recall, and the VW emissions-cheating recall, but automotive news in general is peppered with small recalls over things like faulty windshield wipers and leaking […]
Toyota Recalls 112,500 Vehicles in US
It’s been a while since our last a significant recall post, in a year that’s so far been pretty quiet on the recall front when compared to 2014. But this week, Toyota announced it was planning to recall around 112,500 vehicles for various potential safety issues. The first recall affects 110,000 Camry, Camry Hybrid, Highlander, […]
January 2015 Car Recalls from Around the Auto Industry
After 2014—also known as the Year of the Recall—automakers are likely to be a lot more proactive when it comes to notifying customers of potential issues with their vehicles and fixing them before they cause accidents or injuries. After all, no one wants a repeat of the never-ending GM recall, or the Takata recall that […]
Honda Airbag Recall Expands to 5.4 Million Vehicles
After stating their intentions to do so in a congressional hearing last Friday, Honda has now officially and voluntarily expanded its recall of vehicles which contain faulty Takata airbags. Today the once-regional Honda airbag recall expands nationwide to cover approximately 5.4 million vehicles. Honda has been working with Takata and the NHTSA to remove and […]
Toyota to Tackle Takata Airbag Issue
The nation is currently in a grip of terror. Okay, perhaps that’s a little extreme, but many drivers are faced with vehicles equipped with airbags that could explode and send shards of metal and other shrapnel into the car. And who wants that from a device designed to save your life, rather than mutilate your […]
Nationwide Honda Airbag Recall Announced at Congressional Hearing
While Japanese airbag manufacturing company Takata continues to defy the NHTSA’s mandated nationwide recall, instead insisting that recalls are only needed in high-humidity areas where the climate makes their defective driver-side airbags more likely to explode, Honda has taken it upon itself to fix the issue. Speaking before the US House Committee on Energy and […]
Honda Air Bag Recalls Not Hurting Sales
The recent Honda air bag recalls certainly seem like bad press for the Japanese automaker, but so far, they haven’t had a particularly negative impact on sales. The recall of about 5 million early 2000s Honda vehicles that were built with faulty Takata airbags does not seem to have upset car customers, who helped Honda’s […]
Fifth Honda Fit Recall Prompts Pay Cut For Top Executives
If GM Had This Policy, Mary Barra Would Be Living On the Streets of Detroit By Now
In an admirable act of automotive seppuku, the president of Honda and 12 other top executives will all take a significant pay cut as penance for the recently announced fifth Honda Fit recall. Though it doesn’t affect US versions of the new hybrid, the latest recall covers 425,825 Fits and other models in Japan. No […]
4.7 Million Cars Affected by Latest Airbag Defect Recall
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced yesterday an airbag defect recall of epic proportions, but in this, the year of the recall, is anyone really surprised? In total, 4.7 million vehicles are affected, and NHTSA is reporting that at least four people have died as a result of this defect. Drivers whose cars […]
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Canyonero Hybrid
The LA Auto Show isn’t for another 11 days, and though we know that there will be a multitude of reveals there, it’s going to be awful hard for anybody to top the revelation of the Canyonero Hybrid on last night’s episode of The Simpsons. Jalopnik’s resident eagle eye Jason Torchinsky spotted a billboard proudly […]
Knee Air Bags Not That Helpful, Says IIHS
When it comes to vehicle safety, the more air bags the better, right? Not necessarily. The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) recently conducted a study that called the effectiveness of knee air bags into question. Knee air bags are usually located on the lower half of the dashboard. Their goal is to reduce leg […]
Global Steelmaker May Have Delivered Poor Quality Metal to Automakers, Lied About It for Over a Decade
We are truly in the gilded age of the enormous corporate scandal. However, this isn’t yet another time that Uber is in trouble or a company’s products are turning from safety measures to grenades—this time, the world’s third-largest steel producer, Kobe Steel, has owned up to lying over and over, starting more than 10 years […]
New Toyota Ad Campaign: Spend an Hour, Save Your Life
Toyota is launching a new multi-channel ad campaign in three priority markets: Los Angeles, Dallas, and Miami. The ad focuses on the massive Takata airbag inflator recall and urges drivers to take the time out of their day to get their airbag repaired, as the entire process will only take about an hour. Toyota is […]
Why Are Cars so Boring? A Design Engineer Explains
Thousands of cars are produced every day and given how easy it is to imagine what an exciting, exotic car might look like, it seems strange that the vast majority are so boring. Do engineers just sit around in a room coming up with fresh new ways to disappoint customers and actively deny them cheap […]
For Sale: One Disgraced Airbag Manufacturer, to Good Home
In case you hadn’t heard, Takata Corporation has been raked over the coals for some time now, due to the fact that humidity and warm temperatures can ironically turn their airbag inflators into shrapnel-throwing grenades, creating the largest automotive recall in history. Now, the long process of fining and lambasting is coming to something of […]