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    • AUTO NEWS - ARTICLES INDEX - PLEASE MAKE A SELECTION FROM THE LIST BELOW:  
  • Sept 25, 08 - General Motors’ New Plant Will Build Smaller, Fuel-Sipping Engines
  • Sept 23, 08 - Pumping Hydrogen
  • Sept 18, 08 - For New Pickups, Ford and Chrysler Talk About Fuel Efficiency
  • Sept 18, 08 - Pollution Scores, in Plain Sight
  • Sept 11, 08 - G.M. at 100: Is Its Future Electric?
  • Sept 10, 08 - The Batteries Are Included
  • Aug 29, 08 - 4 Crossovers Score Well
  • Aug 23, 08 - Caution: Driver May Be Surfing the Web
  • Aug 19, 08 - GM Offers Employee Prices to Spur Slow Sales
  • Aug 15, 08 - Misers in Disguise: A Dozen Unlikely Fuel Sippers
  • Aug 14, 08 - Plug-In Hybrid From G.M. Is Nearly Ready for Testing
  • Aug 13, 08 - Aiming to Keep Pace, Chrysler Is Shrinking S.U.V.'s
  • Aug 03, 08 - Premium Required? Not Necessarily
  • Aug 02, 08 - For Extended Car Warranties, Resist the Showroom Pitch
  • July 29, 08 - After Bike-Sharing Success, Paris Considers Electric Cars
  • July 26, 08 - Plummeting Resale Values Lead Chrysler to End Leases
  • July 20, 08 - A Sedan Fueled by the Future
  • July 17, 08 - Car Buyers Downsize, but Spend Big on Options
  • July 13, 08 - Demystifying the Dreaded End-of-Lease Inspection
  • July 05, 08 - Mercedes and Audi Sales Up; British Car Sales Fall
  • July 05, 08 - Gas Was Once a Bigger Expense
  • June 29, 08 - Be the Prius
  • June 29, 08 - As Gas Prices Rise, Teenagers’ Cruising Declines
  • June 24, 08 - M.P.G. Can Mislead When Searching for Fuel Efficiency
  • June 24, 08 - Car Rental Agencies Using Add-Ons to Lift Returns
  • June 18, 08 - Drivers Turning to Lower-Grade Gas
  • June 15, 08 - With Gasoline Prices Up, Drivers Push Closer to the End of the Tank
  • June 15, 08 - A New-Old Pony Enters the Corral
  • June 4, 08 - G.M. Shifts Focus to Small Cars in Sign of Sport Utility Demise
  • June 6, 08 - Highly Rated Auto Plants Set to Close
  • June 5, 08 - Detroit Automakers Compete for a Vanishing Truck Market
  • June 8, 08 - Only Pretending It’s a Brute
  • June 5, 08 - Detroit Automakers Compete for a Vanishing Truck Market
  • June 4, 08 - Big Vehicles Stagger Under the Weight of $4 Gas
  • June 3, 08 - Japan: Nissan Leads Decline in Auto Sales
  • June 1 , 08 - Stigma-Free Stand-In for the Minivan
  • June 1 , 08 - Road Maps to Automotive Adventures
  • May 31, 08 - The Huge Hybrid: a New Twist on S.U.V.’s Finds Few Takers
  • May 20, 08 - Japan: Investing in Batteries
  • May 24, 08 - Teeth Gritted, Drivers Adjust to $4 Gasoline
  • May 21, 08 - State legislators in overdrive on motor vehicle laws
  • May 18, 08 - Over the Long Haul, Diesels Appeal
  • May 18, 08 - So You Think Gas Costs a Lot?
  • May 11 , 08 - Getting Used to the Quirks
  • May 13 , 08 - Nissan Plans Electric Car in U.S. by ’10
  • May 11 , 08 - Ready for Its Hollywood Close-Up
  • May 11 , 08 - The Car That Made a Brand
  • May 11 , 08 - Even Listening Is Dangerous
  • May 06 , 08 - Want $2.99 Gas? Buy a Chrysler
  • May 04 , 08 - Cat Gets New Life
  • May 04 , 08 - Final Cat From Ford’s Litter
  • April 27, 08 - A Plug-In Conversion for Priu
  • April 27, 08 - Big S.U.V.’s Drink Less
  • April 27, 08 - Fear, but Few Facts, on Hybrid Risk
  • April 23, 08 - G.M. Trails Toyota as U.S. Sales Slow
  • April 22, 08 - Early Target for Fuel Economy Is Expected
  • April 20, 08 - Michelin Giving Up on PAX Run-Flat Tire
  • April 15, 08 - Chrysler and Nissan Agree to a Vehicle-Building Pact
  • April 15, 08 - Tesla Motors Files Suit Against Competitor Over Design Ideas
  • April 13, 08 - It Takes a Cyber Village to Catch an Auto Thief
  • April 13, 08 - Huge Recall, but Many Cars Unfixed
  • April 7, 08 - BMW Turns to the Web for Its 1-Series
  • April 6, 08 - Small Cars Seek Appeal Beyond the Cute Factor
  • Mar 30, 08 - Making It Safer to Back Up
  • Mar 30, 08 - Not All Odometers Are Created Equal
  • Mar 29, 08 - Thieves Leave Cars, but Take Catalytic Converters
  • Mar 26, 08 - Ford Sells Luxury Brands for $1.7 Billion
  • Mar 25, 08 - Ford Nears Sale of Jaguar and Land Rover
  • Mar 21, 08 - Name this Truck, Please
  • Mar 18, 08 - Ford Displays a Wreck to Score Safety Points
  • Mar 20, 08 - Dismal Year Is Forecast for Car Sales
  • Mar 17, 08 - Bearer of Bad News Decides to Advertise It
  • Mar 16, 08 - ‘Catastrophic’ Failure Leads to Seat Recall
  • Mar 15, 08 - Pontiac Tries High - Performance Revival
  • Mar 11, 08 - Hazards: Rise in Car Fatality Rates Seen at Age 12
  • Mar 09, 08 - Deflated Hope for Nitrogen
  • Mar 09, 08 - A Breed of 4-by-4 Hatched on the Fly
  • Mar 09, 08 - Alternative Dealers Selling Alternative Power
  • Feb 24, 08 - A Pollution Scorecard for New Cars
  • Feb 15, 08 - Ford Introduces One Small Car for a World of Markets
 

• Feb 10, 08 - Motoring:  Citing 15-Year Delay, Suit Seeks Action on Rebuilt Wrecks

  • Feb 02, 08 - G.M.’s Car Sales Rise in an Otherwise Tough Month
  • Jan 27 , 08 - Toll Discounts for Going Green
  • Jan 21 , 08 - Israel Is Set to Promote the Use of Electric Cars
  • Dec 02, 07 - Service Bulletin: Fix Your Car
  • Nov 29, 07 - Ford Agrees to Give Vouchers in Rollover Suit
  • Nov 25, 07 - A Cloud Over Reborn Shelby Mustangs
  • Nov 18, 07 - A Loud Legal Voice on Warming
  • Nov 15, 07 - Who Invited the Non-Hybrid?
  • Nov 11, 07 - Web Surfers Can Take the Internet Along for the Ride
  • Oct 24, 07 - How Well Can a Lexus Park Itself
  • Oct 24, 07 - Better Mileage? Lower Emissions? You Can Do It, Detroit
  • Oct 24, 07 - With Safety in Mind, the Car Takes Charge
  • Oct 21, 07 - Woozy Driver, Test Thyself
  • Oct 11, 07 - A Device to Play Your iPod Through an Open Station on a Car’s FM Radio
  • Sept 30, 07 - Back-Seat Parenting for Beginning Drivers
  • Sept 30, 07 - Once Again We’re Driving What’s Not Made Here
  • Sept 23, 07 - Trapdoor Opens on Hybrid Credit
  • August 26, 07 - Germans Land on Saturn and Things Shape Up
  • August 26, 07 - When Newer Is Not Better
  • August 26, 07 - A System to Track Lemons, in Want of $11 Million
  • August 26, 07 - Their Titles Laundered, the Cars Are Still Lemons
  • August 12, 07 - Lexus-Level Dependability, Now Available at Lower Prices
  • July 31, 07 - Lifetime Powertrain Warranty
  • July 29, 07 -  Aiming to Design for Global Appeal
  • July  29, 07 -  A Lesson in European Economy
  • June 17, 07 - A Constellation of Tauruses
  • June 17, 07 - Mad Scionists: Young, Hip and a Bit Less Square
  • June 17, 07 - AMG: Passcode to Absolute Power in a Mercedes-Benz
  • June 17, 07 - A Powerful Workhorse for Odd Jobs
  • May 14, 07 - Web Videos Let Car Buyers Survey Their Many Choices
  • May 06, 07 - It’s the Truth, but Not the Whole Truth
  • April 21, 07 - Toyota to Increase Imports to Meet Demand for Prius
  • April 06, 07 - Systems to Prevent Rollovers to Be in All New Cars by 2012
  • April 05, 07 - Ford CEO: $28M for 4 months work
  • Mar 19, 07 - A Promotion to Sell Cars by ‘Losing’ the Keys
  • Mar 18, 07 - 2007 Mini Cooper - There’s More Than Meets the Eye
  • Mar 08, 07 - In Europe, Germany May Have to Take the Wheel in Going Green
  • Feb 07, 07 - Stickerless drivers stuck
  • Feb 04, 07 - Motoring:  What MapQuest and G.P.S. Don’t Tell You Can Get You Lost
  • Feb 04, 07 - Engine Sludge: When Good Oil Goes Bad
  • Jan 28, 07 - Subaru Parks Its Styling in the Middle of the Road
  • Jan 28, 07 - An Over-the-Top Z4
  • Jan 25, 07 - Ford Loses Record $12.7 Billion in ’06
  • Jan 23, 07 - Ford Shows a Hybrid Car With 2 Modes: Electric or Electric
  • Dec 12, 06 - E.P.A. Revises Its Formula to Calculate Auto Mileage
  • Dec 03, 06 - BMW M6: The Devil Is in the Gearbox
  • Dec 03, 06 - Los Angeles, the Sequel: Car Show Has a New Script
  • Dec 03, 06 - As Safe as It Gets
  • Nov 19, 06 - Cars So Green They’re Just a Dream
  • Nov 19, 06 - Saturn Vue and Mercury Mariner: Hybrids, Mild or Seasoned, From the Motor City
  • Oct 08, 06 - 2007 Volkswagen Eos: In Praise of a Convertible Goddess
  • Sept 10, 06 - 2007 Nissan Versa: Another David Wielding a Slingshot
  • Sept 10, 06 - 2006 Hyundai Accent GLS: Incredible Invisible Subcompact
  • Sept 10, 06 - Transmissions 101: How to Get in Gear
  • Aug, 27 - 2007 Dodge Ram SRT10: Overpriced, Overpowered and Proud of It
  • Aug 13, 06 - 2007 Saturn Sky: Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
  • Aug 13, 06 - Green Light for the Camaro Completes a Pony Car Trio
  • July 30, 06 - P What? PZEV’s Are Unsung Heroes in the Push to Clean Up the Air
  • July 30, 06 - 2007 Dodge Caliber: More Bang for the Buck
  • July 30, 06 - A Look at an Overlooked Hybrid
  • June 19, 06 - Cars Lacking Side Air Bags Fail Crash Test
  • June 10, 06 - 2007 Jaguar XK: A Low-Fat Cat With Heavy Responsibilities
  • June 06, 06 - Safety: Child Restraint Seats Found Safer Than Seat Belts
  • May 28, 06 - 2007 Mercedes-Benz S-Class: Leave the Driving to the Microchips
  • May 28, 06 - Did You Want an Extension With That Warranty?
  • May 28, 06 - Best Engines of 2006
  • May 14, 06 - Seat Belt Advocates Report Strong but Uneven Progress
  • May 15, 06 - Less Than Meets the Eye
  • May 02, 06 - 10 States, in Challenge to U.S., Plan Suit to Force Better Mileage Rules for S.U.V.'s
  • April 27, 06 - Daimler Earnings Rise Despite Setbacks
  • April 27, 06 - Bush to Meet Big 3, Talks on Fuel Issues & Pensions
  • April 30, 06 - Challenging Toyota's Hybrid Hegemony
  • April 28, 06 - Profits, Prices Spur Oil Outrage
  • Feb 06, 06 - 100-M.P.G. Cars: It's a Start - NY TIMES
  • Feb 14, 06 - Reports: GM to invest $500M in Michigan
  • Feb 08, 06 - Carmakers’ big idea: Think small
  • Feb 08 06 - Buy a Hybrid, and Save a Guzzler
  • E.P.A. Set to Reveal Changes In Fuel Economy Calculations
   By Michiline Maynard
  • Ford recalls 3.8 million pickups, SUVs; Toyota recalling nearly 1 million vehicles
   AP Writer Dee-Ann Durbin in Detroit contributed to this report. Detroit Free Press Inc.
  • The Cost of Idling By C. Claiborne Ray
  • Congress Caps Credits for Hybrid Cars By: Jeremy W. Peters
  • Highway Bill Imposes Strict Car Safety Rules By:DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • Car Buyers Acquire New Rights By Jordan Rau, Times Staff Writer
  • Solo in a Hybrid? Merge Left By: Dan Weikel and Amanda Covarrubias, Times Staff Writers
  • Top 10 Summer Travel Tips By: Edmunds.com Editors
  • Fine Print Binds Car Buyers By: BRIAN ROSS and JILL RACKMILL
  • Car Dealers in Capitol's Fast Lane By: Jordan Rau (Times Staff Writer)
  • The 2 New 'Must Haves' of Auto Safety By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • California Backs Plan for Big Cut in Car Emissions By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • A Navigator on the Windshield Charts Your Course By: TIM GNATEK (NY TIMES)
  • Dude, where's my resale value? By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • Catching Up to the Cost of Global Warming By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • Mercedes-Benz Recalls 680,000 Cars for Sensotronic Braking System
     by: Trevor Hofmann (American Auto Press)
  • Building a better 'lemon law' Bill By: Ed Fletcher (Bee Capitol Bureau)
  • Hyundai Near Top of a Quality Ranking By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • Fuel Economy Barely Rises; S.U.V.'s Are Blamed By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)
  • Strong Yen and Drop in U.S. Sales Hurt Profit at Honda By: TODD ZAUN (NY TIMES)
  • G.M. Has Way to Go on Recall Redemption By: DANNY HAKIM and FARA WARNER (NY TIMES)
  • Daimler Says It Won't Bail Out a Partner, Mitsubishi Motors By: DANNY HAKIM  (NY TIMES)
  • Safety: Greatest Worker Peril: The Road   by: JOHN O'NEIL (NY TIMES)
  • Struck in Side, Many Cars Fare Poorly in Safety Test   by: Danny Hakim (NY TIMES)
  • Consumer Groups Sue Over Car Recall Limits   by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)
  • Protecting Children as Vehicles Back Up   by: John R. Quain  (NY TIMES)
  • Panel Proposes Changes for Pickups & S.U.V.'s   by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)
  • DaimlerChrysler Struggles to Turn the Corner    by: Mark Landler w/ Micheline Maynard (NY TIMES)
  • A Chip-Based Challenge to a Car's Spinning Camshaft   by: IAN AUSTEN (NY TIMES)
  • California Takes Aim at Dealer Bias in Car Loans by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)
  • Even Mercedes Hits a Few Speed Bumps   by: John O'Dell  (LA TIMES)
  • American Cars Show Gains in a Survey of Dependability   by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)

• E.P.A. Set to Reveal Changes In Fuel Economy Calculations
   By MICHELINE MAYNARD

January 6, 2006

DETROIT, Jan. 6 - The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to unveil next week long-awaited changes in the way that it calculates fuel economy ratings for cars and trucks.

The agency is scheduled to announce the action at a news conference on Thursday in Detroit. The announcement falls during the preview days for the North American International Auto Show, which opens to the public next Saturday.

The new standards, under consideration for months, would be the first revision in determining fuel economy ratings in 20 years. The goal is to have final standards in place for vehicles made for the 2008 model year, which will go on sale in 2007, E.P.A. officials said late last year.


read the complete article

• Ford recalls 3.8 million pickups, SUVs; Toyota recalling nearly 1 million vehicles
   AP Writer Dee-Ann Durbin in Detroit contributed to this report. Detroit Free Press Inc.

September 7, 2005, 2:19 PM

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday recalled 3.8 million pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles for a cruise control switch suspected of causing engine fires. It is the fifth largest auto industry recall in U.S. history.

Ford said the recall of 1994-2002 model-year vehicles includes the company's hot-selling F-150 pickup truck, Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator and Ford Bronco. The company said it would start sending out recall notices to vehicle owners immediately.


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• The Cost of Idling By C. CLAIBORNE RAY

Q. If my car will be idling for just a few minutes, am I using more gas by letting it run or by shutting it off and restarting it?

A. Automotive authorities from government to industry agree that with modern cars, it is almost always more economical to stop the engine and restart it when ready to move, even if the idling period is only a minute, and sometimes even less.

The exception occurs when the car is not warmed up and the waiting time is really only a moment, say at a stoplight, said Charles E. Freese V, an engineer who is executive director of diesel engineering at General Motors.


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• Congress Caps Credits for Hybrid Cars By: JEREMY W. PETERS

Congress Caps Credits for Hybrid Cars

DETROIT, July 29 - Tucked away on page 1,391 of the 1,724-page energy bill approved by Congress this week is a new tax credit intended to make fuel-efficient vehicles like hybrids more appealing to consumers. But as is often the case with tax credits, the devil is in the details.


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• Highway Bill Imposes Strict Car Safety Rules By:DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)

Highway Bill Imposes Strict Car Safety Rules

DETROIT, July 29 - Sweeping auto safety initiatives make a transportation bill passed by Congress on Friday the most comprehensive legislation of its kind in years.

As part of the bill, Congress is ordering the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to impose a number of more stringent safety measures, including the first performance standards aimed at decreasing the likelihood of a rollover, a particularly deadly kind of accident that claims more than 10,000 American lives annually. Currently, the agency conducts rollover testing but the results are only used to determine star ratings on cars and light trucks for consumer information.

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• Car Buyers Acquire New Rights By Jordan Rau, Times Staff Writer

Car Buyers Acquire New Rights

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday approved legislation giving California the nation's strictest limits on the ways car dealers can market used vehicles, profit off loans and slip in extraneous charges.

Dubbed the "Car Buyer's Bill of Rights," the legislation, which takes effect July 1, 2006, is the most substantial protection measure for automobile purchasers since 1982, when California's Lemon Law was signed and became a model for other states. Advocates and car dealers alike predicted components of the new law would be copied elsewhere.


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• Solo in a Hybrid? Merge Left By: Dan Weikel and Amanda Covarrubias, Times Staff Writers

Solo in a Hybrid? Merge Left

Motorists who drive solo in fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles will gain access to carpool lanes in California under a massive transportation bill approved by Congress on Friday that includes billions of dollars for projects statewide.

The $286.5-billion bill, the first major transportation funding measure since 1998, cleared the House and Senate by large bipartisan votes. California will receive roughly $23 billion for highway projects — a return of about 92 cents for every dollar in gas taxes the state sends to Washington.

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• Top 10 Summer Travel Tips By: Edmunds.com Editors

Top 10 Summer Travel Tips

Whether you're heading out on a weekend road trip, planning a month-long family vacation or waking a four-wheeled friend from its long winter's nap, you'll want to make sure the summer driving season brings maximum enjoyment and minimum stress. Before you pack up the car, check out these travel tips from our staff of road warriors.


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• Fine Print Binds Car Buyers By: BRIAN ROSS and JILL RACKMILL

Consumers Forced into Arbitration Process, Out of Courts

Kelly Lloyd, of Spotsylvania, Va., thought she and her husband were asking all the right questions when buying a used car. They test-drove the 2000 Honda Accord they had their eye on, asked about the car's history, and, she says, were assured by the dealership that it was like new. Only later, she says, did she learn that the car had been totaled in an accident by a previous owner.

But there was another surprise. Contained in the tiny print on the back of the sales contract she signed was a binding arbitration clause, which meant she had given up her right to ever sue the dealer in court if anything went wrong with the car.


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• Car Dealers in Capitol's Fast Lane By: Jordan Rau (Times Staff Writer)

January 29, 2005

SACRAMENTO — While Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared war on Sacramento's "special interests," he has helped one of California's most effective business lobbies — car dealers — accelerate to new levels of influence in the Capitol. Dealerships are among the most regulated sales industries in the state, with lemon laws that dictate precisely how they may market their products and a state board that can ban dealers from moving within 10 miles of another showroom peddling the same make of car.


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• The 2 New 'Must Haves' of Auto Safety By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)

Nov. 15, 2004

DETROIT, Nov. 15 - Many car shoppers count cup-holders, check legroom and carefully consider color.

Top auto experts, however, say there are two important must-have safety features on their own shopping lists : side air bags specifically designed to protect a person's head, and electronic stability control, which helps drivers regain control of a swerving vehicle by automatically applying brake pressure.

Recent studies have suggested these two features are the most effective of a wide range of new safety technologies available on cars and trucks.

"I wouldn't buy a car without either of them," said Susan Ferguson, the senior vice president for research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a leading safety research group supported by the insurance industry.


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• California Backs Plan for Big Cut in Car Emissions By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)

Sept. 24, 2004

California regulators approved a plan on Friday aimed at drastically reducing over the next 11 years the vehicle emissions of gases that scientists have linked to global warming.

It would be the first such regulation in the nation and one that, if it survives legal hallenges, would force automakers to increase sharply the fuel efficiency of millions of vehicles.

Though the plan is being put into place by only one state, automakers see it as the most challenging demand from government since Congress first imposed standards to improve fuel economy in the 1970's. California is by far the nation's largest auto market, accounting for a fifth of national sales.

Industry officials said the plan would lead them to restrict sales of large sport utility vehicles and high- performance sports cars in the state. Regulators, including the state's staff of engineers, sharply disputed that and said the industry already had much of the technology to comply on the shelf or, in the case of gas-electric hybrid cars, on the road.


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• A Navigator on the Windshield Charts Your Course By: TIM GNATEK (NY TIMES)

Aug 26 , 2004

Not all who wander need be lost. Microsoft's Streets and Trips 2005, the latest version of the popular travel planning software, has arrived. In the $129 package, Microsoft bundles a small Global Positioning System device that puts the program's detailed road maps into better context. Now, not only can you plot trips and get additional information, you can do so en route.

Streets and Trips covers 5.4 million miles of roads and identifies 1.8 million points of interest in the United States and Canada. The addition of G.P.S. makes it easier to find your current position; check on speed, bearing and elevation; see how far you have come; and get updated directions. Online updates for road construction and closures increase the odds that the suggested route is quickest.


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• Dude, where's my resale value? By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)

Aug 26 , 2004

Detroit's big rebates and interest-free financing deals have strengthened car sales for the last three years. But they have also eroded the resale value of many American automotive brands, and that could cost consumers thousands of dollars when they trade in their vehicles.

None of the traditional American brands are among the 10 vehicles expected to retain the most value over the next half-decade, according to a new report from Kelley Blue Book, a company that tracks used car values. But American brands dominate the other end of the spectrum, the vehicles expected to lose the most value.


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• Catching Up to the Cost of Global Warming (By DANNY HAKIM)

July 25, 2004

ONE does not often hear financial analysts talk about climate change, but this month John A. Casesa, an analyst at Merrill Lynch, organized a teleconference to address a troubling question for Detroit's automakers: As regulators around the world move to curb global-warming emissions from cars and improve fuel efficiency, what happens if Wall Street adds up the costs?

The most likely answer will not make General Motors and Ford Motor very happy. Mr. Casesa's call included a presentation by the World Resources Institute, an environmental policy group in Washington, which recently issued a report on the subject with Sustainable Asset Management, an investment group based in Zurich.


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• M-B's Largest Ever Recall is Another Embarrassment in a Long Line of Recent Problems (American Auto Press)

Embarrassing? No doubt Mercedes-Benz is hardly happy about its latest recall, involving a total of 680,000 units equipped with the German brand's highly-touted Sensotronic advanced braking system.

Not only is this the largest product recall in the automaker's storied history, but the brake-by-wire technology has been sold as revolutionary, reinventing the way cars brake. The system that was to be failsafe now shows tendencies to merely fail. What's the problem? The system's hydraulic tank can develop bubbles that make brake failure possible, stated the automaker in a service bulletin.


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• Building a better 'lemon law' Bill on cooling-off period advances By: Ed Fletcher (Bee Capitol Bureau)

March 31, 2004


An effort to sweeten the state's "lemon law" by giving consumers three days to back out of used-car purchases cleared its first legislative hurdle Tuesday.

In addition to providing a cooling-off period, AB 1839 by Assemblywoman Cindy Montañez, D-San Fernando, would stop dealers from profiting for arranging financing and require them to disclose the actual cost of add-ons.



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• Hyundai Near Top of a Quality Ranking By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)

April 29, 2004

DETROIT, April 28 - For the first time, new-car buyers ranked Hyundai, the South Korean automaker, higher in initial quality than any domestic or European manufacturer, according to a survey released on Wednesday by J. D. Power & Associates The result was a coup for Hyundai, which has been trying hard to upgrade its image from cheap to classy, or at least respectable, and close the gap between it and Toyota Motor and Honda Motor.



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• Fuel Economy Barely Rises; S.U.V.'s Are Blamed By: DANNY HAKIM (NY TIMES)

April 29, 2004


DETROIT, April 28 - The fuel economy of new cars and trucks ticked up slightly in the 2003 model year, but has remained stagnant over the last five years, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's annual fuel economy report, which was released Wednesday.

On average, new cars and trucks get significantly fewer miles to the gallon today than in the late 1980's. Improvements in engine technology and car design have been more than offset by the continuing preference of Americans for sport utility vehicles and other light-duty trucks over cars.



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• Strong Yen and Drop in U.S. Sales Hurt Profit at Honda By: TODD ZAUN (NY TIMES)

April 28, 2004


OKYO, April 27 - The Honda Motor Company said Tuesday that profit fell more than a third in the latest quarter, hurt by unfavorable currency swings and a decline in sales in the crucial North American market.

Honda, which was surpassed by Nissan Motor as Japan's second-largest carmaker, also warned that it expected net profit to fall 16 percent for the year ending in March 2005 because of foreign exchange losses.



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• G.M. Has Way to Go on Recall Redemption By: DANNY HAKIM and FARA WARNER (NY TIMES)

April 28, 2004


DETROIT, April 27 - General Motors called it the Road to Redemption campaign: After years of problems with quality, the company started proclaiming in an unusual series of newspaper and magazine ads beginning last year that it had rededicated itself to fixing its past problems.

"Humbling lessons" had been learned over the last decade, the ads said. New leaves had been turned over. And after a "long journey back," G.M. was "building the best cars and trucks in our history."



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• Daimler Says It Won't Bail Out a Partner, Mitsubishi Motors By: DANNY HAKIM  (NY TIMES)

April 23, 2004

DETROIT, April 22 - DaimlerChrysler will not bail out its struggling partner, Mitsubishi Motors, putting a cloud over the Japanese automaker's future.

DaimlerChrysler, the largest shareholder in Mitsubishi Motors, with a 37 percent stake, said in a brief statement released in Germany late Thursday that it had decided not to pump cash into the company to keep it solvent.

The development is a serious setback to the strategy of DaimlerChrysler's chief executive, Jürgen Schrempp, to create a global automotive giant. And it could be a major blow to the recovery strategy of the Chrysler Group, one of the traditional Big Three domestic automakers. A central element of Mr. Schrempp's plan was to cut costs by having Chrysler and Mitsubishi develop vehicles jointly, including small- and midsize cars and pickup trucks.



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• Safety: Greatest Worker Peril: The Road   by: JOHN O'NEIL (NY TIMES)

April 13, 2004

Driving is the most dangerous thing American workers do on the job, according to a study by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Over all, workplace deaths fell over the last decade, but work-related driving fatalities increased, accounting for 22 percent of all worker deaths, the analysis found.

Almost 90 percent of the driving deaths involved men, whose fatality rate was six times as high as that of women.

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• Struck in Side, Many Cars Fare Poorly in Safety Test   by: Danny Hakim (NY TIMES)

April 18, 2004

The results are in from the first consumer test of how passenger cars fare when struck in the side by sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks. And they are not good.

Ten of 13 midsize car models tested by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a research group financed by car insurers, received the lowest of four possible ratings, indicating a likelihood of serious or fatal injury. The tests also showed that women were at disproportionate risk in truck-car side-impact collisions.

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• Consumer Groups Sue Over Car Recall Limits   by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)

March 11 , 2004

Two consumer groups sued the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Wednesday over the practice of allowing automakers to limit car recalls to specific states.

Though almost all vehicle recalls are conducted nationwide, the traffic safety agency restricts some to states with particular characteristics. Typically, those are either cold states that use rock salt on roads - the salt can lead to corrosion in vehicles - or states with high temperatures, which can lead to different types of problems.

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• Protecting Children as Vehicles Back Up   by: John R. Quain  (NY TIMES)

November 7, 2003


Kathy Rubenstein bought her 2003 Acura MDX last spring, she was focused on getting the navigation package. But she considered the rearview camera that came as part of it as little more than a novelty.

"Now I always glance at it when I put it in reverse," said Ms. Rubenstein, the director of marketing for Mount Sinai Hospital of Queens and a mother of two. Ms. Rubenstein, who said she juggled up to six car pools a week, admitted that "now that I'm driving a bigger car, I don't think I could not have it."

 
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• Panel Proposes Changes for Pickups & S.U.V.'s   by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)
September 9 , 2003


DETROIT, Sept. 9 — A task force of auto industry engineers has proposed redesigning some sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks so they inflict less damage on cars and making side air bags standard equipment on all vehicles.

The proposed standards, aimed for the end of the decade, are part of a broader industry effort to improve the safety of sport utilities and pickup trucks.


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• DaimlerChrysler Struggles to Turn the Corner    by: Mark Landler w/ Micheline Maynard (NY TIMES)
September 9, 2003

RANKFURT, Sept. 9 — It is hard to shake the feeling that DaimlerChrysler owns the Frankfurt International Motor Show: the company showcases its cars in imperial style over three exhibition halls.

But at this year's show, which opened to the media today, it is also hard to shake the feeling that DaimlerChrysler, Germany's largest and the world's fifth-largest carmaker, is out of step with both the industry and consumers.

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• A Chip-Based Challenge to a Car's Spinning Camshaft   by: IAN AUSTEN (NY TIMES)
August 21, 2003

F Henry Ford could see the engines now made by the company he founded 100 years ago, he would probably be puzzled by the electronics that control many operations. But the mechanical system operating the valves that bring fuel and air into the engine and let out exhaust would be very familiar.

As in Ford's time, those spring-loaded valves are opened and closed by cams, precisely shaped bumps of steel spinning along a rotating shaft.

But some automotive researchers are working on ways of making mechanical valve controls as obsolete as the Model T Ford. Operating the controls electronically could improve fuel efficiency, reduce emissions and perhaps even eliminate the need for spark plugs in gasoline engines.

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• California Takes Aim at Dealer Bias in Car Loans by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)

July 16, 2003

Gov. Gray Davis of California has signed into law a bill to curb outsize interest rates that car dealers sometimes charge minority customers.

The new statute, say consumer groups that follow the issue, is the nation's first to take aim at discriminatory lending that can result from a practice known as the dealer markup. In a dealer markup, car dealers raise interest rates above the rates they are quoted by auto lending giants or other big financing companies. The dealers pocket the proceeds of the difference, or split them with the financing companies.

Large numbers of car buyers around the country pay thousands of dollars extra because of the dealer markup, which is invisible to typical buyers and little understood by them. Though the markup is often paid by car buyers of all ethnicities, it can be most pronounced for minorities, in which case it runs afoul of federal law that prohibits discriminatory lending practices.

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• Even Mercedes Hits a Few Speed Bumps   by: John O'Dell  (LA TIMES)
The automaker is falling in quality rankings, and complaints keep rolling in.
The problems may take a toll on sales.

July 13, 2003

Its image is up there on the top floor with Prada, Tiffany and Baccarat, but for thousands of Mercedes-Benz buyers these days, reality is down in the bargain basement.

From Newport Beach to Newport News, complaints keep rolling in: Mercedes just isn't making 'em like it used to.

Indeed, the brand has fallen from the top of the heap in most major quality and durability surveys in the United States and Europe, and top management at parent DaimlerChrysler is scrambling to make fixes.

The problems range from the merely bothersome — brake dust that dirties the cars' expensive alloy wheels — to the insufferable.

One owner says his $145,000 V-12-powered S600 sedan sits in his garage in Virginia because the doors and trunk won't open and the battery keeps dying.

Although Mercedes' U.S. sales have not suffered so far — they have nearly tripled since 1995 — the cars have lost their top-selling position in the luxury category to the Lexus division of Toyota Motor Corp.

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• American Cars Show Gains in a Survey of Dependability   by: Danny Hakim  (NY TIMES)

July 9, 2003

DETROIT, July 8 - Mercedes-Benz has fallen behind its sister brand Chrysler in a closely watched report on vehicle dependability, while General Motors has surged. And Japanese vehicles continue, over all, to hold up the best.

The report, issued today by J. D. Power & Associates,focuses on problems that arise over three years of ownership. Its rankings are important because most consumers say a vehicle's reputation for long-term durability is their top consideration in buying.

Lexus, Toyota's luxury brand, had the fewest reported problems in the report, which was based on responses from 55,000 owners of 2000 model vehicles. Owners were asked about 147 potential problems. The most common complaint over all was wind noise, followed by noisy brakes and uneven tire wear.

According to the report, Lexus owners reported 163 problems per 100 vehicles, versus the industry average of 273. Infiniti, Nissan's luxury brand, came in second, with 174 problems. The Buick brand of G.M. was third, with 179 problems.

The most surprising results involved DaimlerChrysler. Since Daimler-Benz bought Chrysler in 1998, auto experts have often asked whether the manufacturer of the Mercedes could bring respectability to a struggling American icon.

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