Forty countries have agreed to a United Nations regulation draft that calls for automatic emergency braking to be standard equipment on all new cars and commercial vehicles by early 2020. Chief among the countries are members of the European Union and Japan. Reuters reported on the regulation draft...Read More»
Come Jan. 1, 2020, it will be illegal to use a cellphone while while at the wheel of a car in Virginia. Both houses in the General Assembly voted to pass new legislation to ban cellphone use while driving to curb distracted driving in the state. The Washington Post reported last week that drivers...Read More»
Last week, more than half a dozen automakers added another 1.5 vehicles to the growing list of cars recalled to fix faulty Takata airbags. The issue is the same as other Takata airbag recalls and it affects both driver- and passenger-side airbags, depending on vehicles. Airbag inflators made by...Read More»
Both the 2019 Ford Edge and 2019 Lincoln Nautilus missed out on an IIHS Top Safety Pick award because of their subpar headlights. The insurance industry-funded safety organization otherwise gave the two related mid-size crossovers excellent marks in the standard round of crash tests. Both the 2019...Read More»
The NTSB released its annual "Most Wanted" list, actions it hopes the federal government takes in the next one to two years. On top of the docket: to mandate that every new vehicle sold in the U.S. features crash-avoidance technology such as automatic emergency braking. The list, published on...Read More»
Pedestrians walking in populous areas of Florida are more likely to be struck and killed by a vehicle than in any other state. A new study found Florida is the most dangerous place for walking in the U.S., with several Sunshine State cities ranked in the top 20 areas for pedestrian deaths. The...Read More»
A new study from the IIHS makes it clear Americans aren't giving up their cell phones behind the wheel, but there's some good news. The IIHS published the results of a study last week and found that drivers are more likely to talk on the phone than text. The study surveyed 800 drivers across the...Read More»
The 2019 Kia Rio may be an inexpensive subcompact car, but the IIHS awarded the sub-compact car a Top Safety Pick award. Earning a Top Safety Pick means the 2019 Rio managed a "Good" rating in the driver-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraint...Read More»
It turns out that Apple iPhone users aren't enabling the "Do Not Disturb" mode that silences calls and text messages when the smartphone thinks its owner may be driving. The IIHS published last week the results of a study of 800 respondents showing only 1 in 5 iPhone users had the function enabled...Read More»
Shopping for a new car with life-saving active safety tech can be a challenge, and not just because of rapidly evolving technology. Compounding the confusion is that there is no widely accepted name for technologies such as automatic emergency braking and blind-spot monitors. AAA said last week...Read More»
The 2019 Jeep Cherokee aced the IIHS' slew of crash tests and showed major improvement over its 2015 predecessor. The latest version of the crossover SUV shares most of its bones with last year's model, illustrating how minor updates to a vehicle's structure can improve performance in crash tests...Read More»
The 2019 Volkswagen Jetta walked away with impressive ratings from the IIHS' latest round of crash tests, but like dim headlights held the sedan back. The only time the 2019 Jetta deviated from the IIHS' "Good" rating was when it came down to headlight performance. The sedan earned a "Marginal"...Read More»
Hyundai on Monday revealed its new multi-collision airbag system, which aims to keep drivers and passengers safe in the event of a secondary impact. Secondary crashes are collisions that occur after the initial impact. For instance, if a driver sideswipes another vehicle and the impact is not great...Read More»
A new headlight option for the 2019 Mercedes-Benz C-Class means the compact luxury sedan now qualifies as a Top Safety Pick+, according to an IIHS report issued Tuesday. Following some changes over the previous criteria for TSP+ awards, vehicles must now earn a "Good" rating in the passenger-side...Read More»
The IIHS last week bestowed Lincoln's flagship Continental sedan with a Top Safety Pick+ award, its highest accolade. The 2019 Continental earned "Good" ratings in all crash categories and its standard suite of active safety features earned a "Superior" rating, two qualifications for the Top Safety...Read More»
As the U.S. government shutdown continues to drag on, the NHTSA said Tuesday that it will not investigate car defects until federal funding is restored. The Detroit Free Press reported Tuesday the agency does not invoke a backup plan without annual appropriations from a government budget. Employees...Read More»
The results are in for 2019 model year vehicles and 30 vehicles earned the coveted Top Safety Pick+ rating from the IIHS. This year, the IIHS raised the bar even higher when considering its top award. Unlike last year, new cars needed to earn a "Good" rating in the passenger-side small overlap...Read More»
European crash testers gave the 2018 Jeep Wrangler a scathing one-star rating Wednesday. Europe's New Car Assessment Program said the off-roader earned the poor rating due in part to its lack of modern active safety equipment. The new Jeep Wrangler didn't offer automatic emergency braking on 2018...Read More»
Automakers have spent decades at work to improve passive safety, that is, functions to ensure occupants remain safe in the event of a crash. However, a new external airbag concept promises to further increases occupant safety by as much as 40 percent. German automotive supplier ZF showed off its...Read More»
