Posted by Dave Sullivan on November 28, 2011 at 2:01 pm
If there is one thing that bothers me is the notion of guilty until proven innocent. Go and visit other countries and this is the way of life there. Not so in the U.S., unless you work for NHTSA. Recent headlines have said that the Volt is basically a tinderbox on wheels…when you have a side impact with a light pole or tree. Statistically unproven and contrary to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety findings that the Volt is a safe vehicle for the masses.
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Posted by George Peterson on August 20, 2009 at 5:29 am
The Cash for Clunkers Program Ended at 8PM EDT on Monday August 24. According to government statistics, 680,114 Cash for Clunkers deals were made using $2.88 billion of the $3 billion authorized for the program.. The average clunker received a $4,235 rebate. Reimbursements are coming very slowly to dealerships and the government is putting more processors on staff to handle the backlog. Overall, a rare successful stimulus program.
On July 24, 2009 new car dealers in the United States began accepting trade-ins of older vehicles not worth much for new cars. Based on their fuel economy and the fuel economy of the new vehicle purchased, customers received a voucher for $3,500 or $4,500 to apply to the purchase of a new car or light truck.
Ultimately, the results of this program may be the sale of slightly over 700,000 new cars and light trucks with about 250,000 incremental to what would otherwise have been sold. But the impact goes deeper. There will have been substantial sales tax revenue from each sale going to states and cities that sorely need the income. Additional income taxes will be generated from the additional commissions and salaries dealership personnel otherwise would not have earned. The list goes on.
A brief synopsis of the impact of the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) is shown below the fold…
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Posted by George Peterson on April 28, 2006 at 2:29 pm
Did you know that the week of April 23 was Tire Safety Week? Most folks don’t know that. But tire safety is a very important subject.
Most folks think that tires are just round and black and usually don’t pay much attention to them, but tires are your only contact with the road and your driving safety depends largely on the performance of your tires. You can have the best handlng car in the world, but if you are running on unsafe tires you are courting trouble.
Check the Air Pressure in Your Tires
Auto industry professionals agree with the tire companies. You should check your tires at least once a month. What should you check? First check the air pressure in your tires. This is easy to do. Maybe you’ll get your hands dirty, but the alternative can be grim. If your tires are underinflated, they will tend to run hotter than they should. This could lead to a blow-out. The recommended tire pressure for your vehicle is found on a label on the door jamb. Follow this recommendation, and you should optimize the life of your tires.
Check the Tread Depth
Tires with a lot of mileage on them may be running out of tread depth. When your tread wears down you can more easily lose traction in slippery road conditions. Also, a worn tire will heat up and is prone to failure. If you can see the top of Lincoln’s head when you put a penny in the tread, you don’t have enough tread depth. At this point, you should strongly consider replacing your tires.
Tires Can Also Wear Out from Age
Several auto manufacturers have recently recommended that you replace any tire that is over six years of age no matter what its tread depth is. In Japan, some companies recommend a longer period – ten years. In any event, common sense prevails. If the sidewalls of your tires are showing small cracks it’s a good idea to take them to your tire dealer and have them inspected.
Air Pressure in Tires Also Can Impact Fuel Economy
Each month, VehicleVoice surveys members to determine what they have done to improve their fuel economy. With gas prices skyrocketing, we expected to see a high percentage of panel members checking their tire pressure to maximize fuel economy. Wrong. Based on the results from our Fuel Price Impact Survey, not enough of you check air pressure. So, for economy’s sake – and safety’s sake – check your air pressure and tread depth monthly.
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Posted by George Peterson on February 3, 2006 at 8:19 am
The January 2006 report issued by the National Highway and Transportation Safety Agency (NHTSA) concludes that larger vehicles are safer than smaller ones. DUH! It took a six page pdf report written by a government contractor from URC Enterprises to summarize crash statistics from 1997 through 2004 to reconfirm the basic equation in physics – F=MA (force equals mass times acceleration).
In a time when more people may be considering smaller cars to offset the skyrocketing cost of fuel, new small B-Segment entries like the Toyota Yaris, Nissan Versa and Honda_Fit are being introduced. These cars meet the need for small, fuel efficient transportation and certainly carry impressive safety credentials like crush zones and air bags galore. Even our own VehicleVoice survey research shows that that there is increased consideration for small cars these days. So, what’s the right thing to do?
Well, as the government report confirms, F still equal MA.
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