Tag Archives: car crash

Autonomous cars cause confusion, pose hazards

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Auto manufacturers are rushing to be the first to sell cars that are semi-autonomous. But they have failed to invest in adequate training for sales personnel who can explain the features — and their limitations.

So what can go wrong?  Here’s one example: According to a recent report in Automotive News,  “As Donna Lee approached the intersection of Roberts Drive and Spalding Drive in Sandy Springs, Ga., the salesman in the passenger seat told her not to hit the brakes, even though two cars were stopped and waiting at the red light ahead.

According to court documents, Lee and Mercedes salesman Desmond Domingo have similar accounts of what happened next on the evening of May 10, 2014. The Distronic semiautonomous system in the Mercedes-Benz GL450, which Domingo believed would bring the car to a full stop, did not kick in as he expected. The Mercedes slammed into the car in front of it at around 40 mph, causing a chain reaction of crashes that left a 16-year-old driver with a concussion and significant damage to the cars involved.”

CARS has testified at forums regarding autonomous vehicles that they should not be offered for sale to the public until they are fully autonomous, and they have been proven safe through at least one year of real-life testing in all normal weather conditions, including heavy rain, fog, and snow. Otherwise, consumers who purchase the cars may end up stranded, or in collisions — particularly if they purchase the cars as used vehicles, and are not familiar with their limitations.

Read more:   Automotive News: Autonomous features ripe for misunderstanding

Takata air bags: take this recall seriously

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How risky is the Takata exploding air bag defect? Some commentators are downplaying the risk, and may mislead consumers into thinking they can ignore the safety recall. They point to reports about the number of known fatalities linked to the faulty air bags, which have been pegged at 6, with another 100 people suffering serious injuries.

However, as the GM ignition switch defect has taught us, the initial numbers can be deceiving. GM acknowledged only 13 fatalities. But we now know that the toll was actually much higher, numbering over 100 lives lost. Plus many more people suffered serious injuries.

In addition, the Takata air bag defect is getting worse. The problem with the air bags is linked to exposure to the elements. Over time, the number of air bags that are prone to exploding with excessive force will inevitably rise.  So will the risk to drivers and front-seat passengers.

If you own a car that is among those equipped with Takata air bags, here are some steps you can take to stay as safe as possible:

1. Check your car’s safety recall status by entering the Vehicle Identification Number on the website for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, here:  https://vinrcl.safercar.gov/vin/

2. Register to receive updates about any changes in your car’s recall status, here: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/subscriptions/index.cfm

3. If your car is being recalled to replace one or both front air bags, contact a local new car dealer and get on the list for repair parts.

4. If the repair parts are not yet available, insist that the manufacturer provide you with a rental car from a rental car company that ensures that its rental cars are not subject to a safety recall, such as Hertz, Enterprise, Avis, Dollar Thrifty, Alamo, and other major rental car companies or smaller companies (except Rent-a-Wreck).

5. Be wary of loaner cars, which dealers have on their lots. Dealers argue that they should be able to foist off unsafe, unrepaired recalled cars to consumers as loaner cars. Yes, it’s nuts. But hey, they’re car dealers.

6. If a manufacturer refuses to provide you with a safe rental car, pending repairs, let CARS know. We’re going to publicize stories about manufacturers refusing to provide safe alternative transportation, like they have promised members of Congress and the media.  Sometimes a bit of sunshine can go a long way toward convincing a company to do the right thing.

CA on track to have the worst auto safety recall law in the nation

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Greedy, unscrupulous car dealers are high-fiving themselves, as Democratic and Republic legislators in California continue to vote unanimously to legalize dealers’ sales of unsafe, recalled used cars with lethal safety defects to consumers.

Testifying against the car dealers’ bill: Cally Houck, who lost her two daughters, Raechel and Jacqueline, ages 24 and 20, due to a recalled car.  A steering hose leaked, causing an under-hood fire and a loss of steering control.  The two sisters ended up colliding head-on with an 18-wheeler truck.

As their mother, Cally Houck, told legislators:  AB 287, the car dealers bill, “would protect dealers, not consumers.” The bill is being authored by Assemblymember Richard Gordon, who has said that his father and grandfather were car dealers.

Also testifying against the bill:  Mark Anderson, who testified on behalf of the National Association of Consumer Advocates. According to NACA, if the dealers win, California will become a dumping ground for unsafe, recalled cars that would be illegal for dealers to sell in other states.  That would translate into more fatalities and injuries, and higher risk for everyone who shares the roads.

According to the car dealers’ bill, the defect that killed Raechel and Jacquie would not be considered “serious.”

Read more:

Orange County Register: A record 64 million cars were recalled last year: Here’s what’s being done to make buying safer used cars

Ventura County Star: Capps introduces rental car bill named for Ojai sisters killed in crash

GM delayed Cobalt safety recall, while fatalities mounted

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General Motors issued a rare apology, after being hit with a barrage of news reports about faulty ignition switches in the popular Chevy Cobalt, that led to at least 13 deaths. GM engineers first discovered the defect in 2004.

Merely jostling the key in the ignition could lead the car to shut down, including disabling the air bags. But for years, GM denied that any defect existed and failed to issue a safety recall. Instead, the company merely issued a “technical service bulletin,” while their customers continued to die.

The defect means that at the very moment when drivers and passengers need the lifesaving protection air bags provide — in the milliseconds after a crash — the air bags would not inflate.

Twenty-nine year old Brooke Melton of Georgia was killed when she was driving to her boyfriend’s house. A 16-year-old died in a crash in Maryland when the ignition switch turned off and the air bag failed to deploy.

Buyer beware: NEVER trust that a dealer will have the safety recall repairs performed before selling you a car that is being recalled. Dealers are so eager to make a buck, fast, they are unwilling to delay sales long enough to get the safety recall repairs done — for FREE.

Plus — dealers are blocking legislation in Washington, DC and in California to stop them from renting, selling, leasing, or loaning unsafe, recalled vehicles to consumers, until they’ve been repaired.

CARS’ tips on how to buy a safe, reliable used car — without having to risk going to a dealer:

Top 12 used car buying tips

Dealers play “used car roulette” with customers’ lives — and oppose legislation to make them stop

Did a dealer sell you an unsafe, recalled car? We want to hear your story. Contact CARS