Archive for the ‘NHTSA Investigations’ Category
Sometimes the transmission will downshift to first gear unexpectedly.
by Michael Strong on Feb.13, 2019
Ford is recalling 1.48 million F-150 trucks from model years 2011–13 due to a transmission downshift problem.
Ford Motor Co is recalling 1.48 million F-150 pickup trucks because of a transmission issue that could, in certain circumstances, lead to a crash.
The company said that select 2011–13 model year trucks with six-speed automatic transmissions could downshift into first gear without warning. This downshift could cause the axle to lock up, causing the truck to skid and the driver to lose control.
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As of now, there have been five accidents and one injury – whiplash – reported tied to the problem. The recall covers 1.26 million trucks in the U.S. The rest are in Canada. Affected 2011-13 F-150 vehicles were built at Dearborn Assembly Plant, April 28, 2010 to Oct. 28, 2013, and Kansas City Assembly Plant, May 18, 2010 to Nov. 18, 2013. (more…)
Tags: Ford recall news, Ford recalling 1.48 million trucks, Ford recalling 1.48M trucks for transmission downshift problem, Ford transmission problem means recall, Ford truck recall comes after five crashes, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, ford news, michael strong, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Business, Executives, Ford, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Personalities, Pickups, Politicians, Quality and Reliability, Recalls, Safety, U.S./North America | No Comments »
Agency also seeks comment on vehicle communications technology.
by Michael Strong on Dec.18, 2018
GM plans to introduce a fully driverless version of the Bolt EV in 2019 for ride-sharing fleets.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will no longer need to determine if a petition complete to issue summary for public comment, hoping to accelerate the process for getting autonomous vehicles on the road.
The agency cut the requirement wanting to improve “the efficiency and transparency of the process to focus on the safety review,” according to Reuters. Now the agency can zero in on the safety of a vehicle without a driver or steering wheel and brakes.
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Automakers currently meet nearly dozens of auto safety standards, often based on the assumption that a licensed driver would be able to control the vehicle using traditional human controls, Reuters noted. (more…)
Tags: NHTSA cuts approval time on autonomous reviews, NHTSA cuts autonomous requirements, NHTSA speeds up self-driving vehicle reviews, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration review, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, michael strong, nhtsa news, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Automobiles, Autonomous Driving, Driverless Vehicles, Lawsuits/Legal, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Personalities, Politicians, Ride-Sharing, Safety, Technology, Technology, U.S./North America, V2V | Comments Off
Safety regulators investigating problems with vehicles.
by Michael Strong on Dec.17, 2018
The 2014 Sonata is part of an NHTSA investigation about engine fires.
U.S. owners of select Hyundai and Kia models filed suit against the automakers in the U.S. trying to resolve a possible defected that may cause some engines to catch fire. The affected vehicles are already part of an ongoing investigation by U.S. regulators.
The more than 350 complaints filed by vehicle owners with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration constitutes “concealment of the defect,” according to the class action suit filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District Court of California by law firm Hagens Berman.
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The fires have been occurring for some time, but have been difficult to separate from fires that occurred as a result of a crash and those that happened before or after a crash. In Florida, more than 400 fires were reported, but just 120 of those fit the description for the lawsuit. (more…)
Tags: 1.6 million Kia Hyundai complaints, Hyundai Kia fire lawsuit, Kia Hyundai engine fires, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, hyundai news, kia news, michael strong, new class-action suit Hyundai Kia engine fires, owners file class-action lawsuit, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Advocacy Groups, Asia Pacific, Automakers, Automobiles, Hyundai, Kia, Lawsuits/Legal, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Recalls, Safety, Sedans, U.S./North America | Comments Off
VW officials say it wasn't possible for him to know early.
by Michael Strong on Dec.10, 2018
VW Chairman Hans Dieter Poetisch denies having knowledge of the scope of the diesel cheating scandal
Volkswagen officials are denying reports that Chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch knew about the diesel emissions cheating allegations before they were revealed by U.S. authorities in September 2015.
German newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported that Poetsch found out about the carmaker’s violations of the rules in late June 2015. He was Volkswagen’s head of finance at that time. The company was led by Martin Winterkorn, who later resigned due to the scandal.
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The paper cites a confidential presentation from the VW legal department, which was made available to investigators handling alleged market manipulation. One of the investigations centered on VW is if executives acted quickly enough and if not, was it done to manipulate the company’s value. (more…)
Tags: Poetsch denies early diesel knowledge, TheDetroitBureau.com., VW Chairman Hans Dieter Poetisch, VW denies Poetsch knew early, VW's Poetisch, auto news, diesel news, lawsuit claims Poetsch saw presentation, michael strong, thedetroitbureau, vw diesel scandal, vw news
Posted in Automakers, Automobiles, Business, Diesel, Europe, Executives, Financials, Investors, Lawsuits/Legal, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Personalities, Safety, U.S./North America, Volkswagen | Comments Off
Agency hasn't yet issued a recall over the matter.
by Michael Strong on Nov.23, 2018
The 2014 Chevrolet Silverado is being investigated for a brake problem. The query covers 2.7 million vehicles.
Federal safety regulators are investigating problems with 2.7 million General Motors full-size pickups and sport-utility vehicles after fielding more than 100 complaints with the brakes on those vehicles.
A brake vacuum pump may break down, requiring the driver to employ increased braking effort resulting longer stopping distances, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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The safety agency has fielded 111 complaints, which include nine crashes and two injuries. (more…)
Tags: GM 111 complaints about brakes, GM full-size truck brake issue, GM probed by NHTSA, GM trucks and utes brake problem, NHTSA investigates GM brake problem, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, gm news, michael strong, nhtsa news, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Automobiles, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Executives, GM, GMC, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Personalities, Pickups, Politicians, SUVs, Safety, U.S./North America | Comments Off
Initial action taken in 2013 covered about 370,000 vehicles.
by Michael Strong on Nov.06, 2018
GM may be forced to recall an additional 1.7 million SUVs due to a faulty windshield wiper.
General Motors is under investigation by U.S. safety regulators that are considering forcing the company to expand a windshield wiper recall to cover 1.7 million additional sport-utility vehicles.
The company recalled 368,000 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain SUVs for the 2013 model year. The government is mulling having the expand the action to include vehicles from 2010 through 2016, according to multiple reports.
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GM issued the initial recall of the SUVs in August 2016 because the wipers could fail. Water and other debris could get into the wiper assembly ball joints, leading to wear and eventual joint failure. (more…)
Tags: GM Recall, GM SUV wiper recall, GM may be forced to expand recall, GM wiper recall expansion, TheDetroitBureau.com., U.S. regulators considering expanding recall, auto news, michael strong, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Chevrolet, GM, GMC, Lawsuits/Legal, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Recalls, SUVs, Safety, U.S./North America | Comments Off
Agency accuses automaker of dragging heels on issuing recalls.
by Michael Strong on Oct.30, 2018
The 2017 Mercedes-Benz E-Class is part of Daimler's recall of 1 million vehicles to resolve and airbag problem.
Mercedes-Benz USA is alleged to have dragged its heels on mailing recall notes to the owners of 1.4 million vehicles in the U.S.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it found after an extensive review the German automaker has been exceeding the time limits for mailing informational letters to owners about recalls for their automobiles.
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The safety agency also has questions about the company’s process for making recall decision, specifically the time it takes to make the call and inform the U.S. government. (more…)
Tags: Mercedes NHTSA query, Mercedes being investigated by NHTSA, NHTSA investigating Mercedes, NHTSA questioning Mercedes recall practices, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, michael strong, recall news, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Business, Executives, Lawsuits/Legal, Markets, Mercedes, NHTSA Investigations, Personalities, Politicians, Safety, U.S./North America | Comments Off
Power tailgates fall for no reason.
by Michael Strong on Oct.18, 2018
NHTSA is investigating a problem with power tailgates on some 2017 Ford F-250s and F-350s.
The power tailgates on some Ford F-Series pickups are opening for no reason causing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to open a preliminary investigation to determine the cause of the problem.
There have been five instances in which the tailgate has opened while the truck was driving, according to the agency. Right now, the query covers 54,400 F-250 and F-350 Super Duty trucks from the 2017 model year.
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Complaints reveal the tailgate just falls open while traveling at speed, sometimes causing damage. One person said it fell while they were driving 65 mph, damaging the tailgate and the trailer they were towing. Another person said opened at least 12 times while driving. (more…)
Tags: Ford tailgate problem investigation, Ford truck investigation, Ford truck tailgates falling, NHTSA investigating Ford, NHTSA investigating Ford truck problem, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, ford news, michael strong, nhtsa news, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Automobiles, Ford, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Pickups, Safety, U.S./North America | Comments Off
Four top leaders have departed in last month.
by Michael Strong on Sep.21, 2018
Four of Tesla's top executives have departed the company during the last four to six weeks.
Tesla’s been hit by wave after wave of difficult news, situations and investigations, apparently causing some executives to rethink the viability of the company.
Liam O’Connor, Tesla’s vice president of global supply management, is the latest of a group of executives to depart the company. He joined Tesla in 2015 after a four-year run with Apple, Bloomberg reports an unnamed insider said O’Connor is leaving the company within the next several weeks.
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His departure marks at least the fourth executive to leave California-based EV maker within the last month. Justin McAnear, vice president of worldwide finance and operation; Gabrielle Toledano, human resources chief; and Dave Morton, chief accounting officer, have also put in their notices. In all, more than 40 executives have reportedly left Tesla in 2018 alone, the news service reports. (more…)
Tags: Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Tesla executives leaving, Tesla leaders leaving, Tesla's Liam O'Connor leaves, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, four Tesla execs leave company, michael strong, tesla news, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automakers, Automobiles, Autonomous Driving, Designers, Driverless Vehicles, EVs, Electrified Vehicles, Executives, Funding, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Personalities, Recruiting, Safety, Safety, Sales, Semi-autonomous Driving, Technology, Tesla, Traffic Fatalities, Trends, U.S./North America, UAW, Union | 4 Comments »
Efforts to reduce toll coming up short warns National Safety Council.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Aug.23, 2018
Two teens were killed in this fiery Tesla crash in Florida earlier this year.
The U.S. highway death toll remained stubbornly high during the first half of 2018 and as many as 40,000 are now expected to die on U.S. roads for the full year, the National Safety Council warned as the country headed into the Labor Day holiday, one of the deadliest times of the year on American roadways.
After decades of decline, highway fatalities began to rise again mid-decade, experts pointing to a variety of possible factors, ranging from distracted driving to the fact that, as the economy recovered, U.S. motorists were simply clocking more miles. Whatever the reason, efforts to improve highway safety have had little seeming effect.
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“When it comes to this leading cause of accidental death, we aren’t making progress – we’re treading water,” said Ken Kolosh, manager of statistics at the National Safety Council. “We cannot accept more than 18,700 deaths as the price of mobility. We hope these numbers remind drivers to slow down, buckle up, pay attention and drive defensively so we can get on the road to zero deaths.”
(more…)
Tags: Highway Deaths, auto news, auto safety, car news, car safety, distracted driving, drug driving, highway fatalities, nsc highway deaths, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, roadway deaths, safe cars, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Advocacy Groups, Automobiles, Markets, NHTSA Investigations, Safety, Safety, Traffic Fatalities, U.S./North America | 1 Comment »
