Watch spectators rush to save lives of rally drivers trapped in capsized Renault

Filed under: Etc., Safety, Videos, Renault, Racing We don't need to tell you why rally racing - though awesome - is incredibly dangerous. As much as we love to watch turbocharged, all-wheel-drive Euro hatches being flung around on dirt, gravel, snow and tarmac, the fact that many of these races go [more]

Apple granted patent for steering-wheel controls to curb distracted driving

Filed under: Aftermarket, Safety, Technology As with any uncomfirmed Apple news, take this one with a big ole grain of sodium chloride. PatentlyApple reports that Apple has been granted a patent for a steering-wheel-mounted remote control for various iDevices. The patent describes a device lookin [more]

Acura recalling over 52,000 TL sedans over power steering hose

Filed under: Sedan, Recalls, Safety, Acura Acura is recalling 52,615 TL sedans from the 2007 and 2008 model years. The problem: a faulty power steering hose that could, over time, deteriorate and develop a fluid leak. According to the automaker's official statement, a leaky power steering hose "co [more]

IIHS crowns three new Top Safety Picks [w/video]

Filed under: Hybrid, Sedan, Safety, Hatchback, Chevrolet, Hyundai, Toyota The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has crowned two sedans and a hatchback as Top Safety Picks: the 2013 Chevrolet Malibe Eco, 2012 Hyundai Azera and 2012 Toyota Prius c. The redesigned 2013 Malibu joins its 2012 model [more]

NHTSA proposes mandatory stability control on big rigs, busses

Filed under: Truck, Government/Legal, Safety Stability control was made mandatory on passenger vehicles for this current model year, but it's still not a requirement for semis and busses. But that could soon be changing, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed requiring t [more]

Canadian motorist hits moose, loses memory, yet makes it to work on time

Filed under: Coupe, Etc., Safety, Videos, Chrysler We will cop to having arrived at work suffering from memory loss, but never from hitting a moose. At least not that we can remember, anyway. It's a story that verily defines "news of the weird," courtesy of CNN: A Canadian woman not only hit a moo [more]

Lamborghini Gallardo driver shows how not to gun it at a light

Filed under: Etc., Safety, Videos, Lamborghini You are the driver of a yellow Lamborghini Gallardo, and you've been waiting at a traffic light for something like an entire minute. That glowing red orb of light has been the matador's crimson cape to your bull, taunting you, holding you back, making [more]

Why you should call 911 if you get pulled over in Mississippi [w/video]

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, Safety, Videos It sounds like an urban legend: A serial killer posing as a police officer pulling over motorists and then murdering them in their vehicles on the side of the highway. But this is no hoax, as the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is on the hunt [more]

Senate OKs mandatory black boxes in cars for 2015, House expected to follow

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety It's been working its way through Congress for years, but according to Car and Driver, an event recorder mandate could soon become law. The Senate has already voted to adopt a transportation bill that would make the so-called "black boxes" mandatory by the 2015 [more]

Feds investigating 2012 Hyundai Elantra after airbag separates driver from his ear

Filed under: Budget, Sedan, Recalls, Safety, Hyundai Safety features like airbags are supposed to keep us safe in the event of a collision. But one driver allegedly met with a nasty surprise when an airbag in his car reportedly sliced his ear in half. According to the Detroit Free Press, the incid [more]

Dramatic garage fire clouds Williams celebration at Spanish Grand Prix

Filed under: Motorsports, Safety, Videos Yesterday's Spanish Grand Prix was an enormous cause for celebration for Williams. The Formula One team that was once at the very top of its game hadn't won a race since 2004, but it broke that losing streak when Pastor Maldonado claimed the checkered flag f [more]

Electronics makers wary of NTSB's proposed hands-free ban

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Technology, GM Here's one from the unsurprising file: The Consumer Electronics Association has written the National Traffic Safety Board in opposition to the proposed ban on hands-free calling. According to The Detroit News, CEA is all for efforts to create t [more]

Engine packaging to blame for Fisker Karma garage fire? [UPDATE]

Filed under: Recalls, Safety, Technology While the investigation of the Fisker Karma that toasted a Texas garage is not over, pundits have begun to weigh in. Automotive News has found a particularly credible one in Jon Bereisa, CEO of Auto Lectrification and the chief engineer of the General Motors [more]

Ford recalling 10,500 F-150, Mustang, Expedition, Lincoln Navigator models over faulty transmission sensor

Filed under: Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced a recall of several recent Ford models due to a defective transmission sensor. Some 10,000 vehicles are affected, including some 2011 and 2012 F-150 pickups, 2012 Expedition and Lincoln N [more]

Woman sued for sending text message to driver who crashed

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety Hiring a lawyer is like hiring a hitman. Except it's not against the law. A lawyer's job is to exert your will on your legal opponent - and on the legal system itself. So it should come as no surprise to see this evolution of distracted driving case law: The vi [more]

Google allowed to test self-driving car on Nevada public streets

Filed under: Hybrid, Etc., Safety, Technology, Hatchback, Toyota Nevada has officially granted Google a license to test autonomous vehicles on public streets. The tech giant underwent demonstrations in both Las Vegas and Carson City to prove its vehicles are as safe or safer than those piloted by m [more]

Chrysler recalling 471 minivans over liftgate issue

Filed under: Minivan/Van, Government/Legal, Safety, Chrysler, Dodge Chrysler has already sold over 84,000 minivans this year, but an unfortunate few were built with defective liftgate sensors. The 471 vehicles with the bad parts include both Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan model [more]

Gov't unsure on who can establish distracted driving laws

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety Turns out the federal government's attempts to create enforceable oversight of cellphone use in vehicles has hit a Swiftian snag: it seems there isn't a government agency specifically empowered with the authority to do so. The legislative boundaries of the Fede [more]

Young drivers know distracted driving is dangerous, do it anyway

Filed under: Safety Distracted driving has joined smoking, drinking, drug use, and unprotected sex on the list of behaviors that teens know are risky but engage in nonetheless. According to a national survey by Consumer Reports, half of all teens surveyed had used a handheld phone while driving in [more]

Fisker Karma to blame for garage fire in Texas?

Filed under: Recalls, Safety, Technology All the Justin Bieber in the world doesn't seem like enough for Fisker to catch a break. First it was a 2012 Fisker Karma spectacularly crapping out on Consumer Reports. Now a Texas fire investigator has said that a house fire originated with the plug-in hyb [more]