Category Archives: safety

Tokyo Based Fujikura Guilty of Auto Parts Price Fixing

Posted on 23 April 2012 by Ken Zino

To date, including Fujikura, eight executives and five companies have been charged and have pled guilty in the department’s ongoing antitrust investigation into the auto parts industry. Three of the companies have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to pay criminal fines totaling more than $748 million. Seven of the executives have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to serve a total of more than 122 months in jail. Continue reading →

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Former BP Engineer Arrested for Obstruction of Justice in Ongoing Deepwater Horizon Criminal Investigation

Posted on 23 April 2012 by Ken Zino

It was the first of what could become many criminal charges to be filed because of the environmental destruction caused by a huge oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. BP said “We will not comment on the Government’s case against former BP employee Kurt Mix and we will continue cooperating in the Department of Justice’s investigation.” Continue reading →

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Michelin Recalls Bus Tires Because Retreads Can Blow Out

Posted on 21 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Both original equipment and aftermarket bus tires – either new or retreaded – are affected. These tires have a casing that may experience a loss of integrity and, in some cases, have “rapid air loss.” Continue reading →

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Enclave, Traverse and Acadia Recalls for Bad Wipers at GM

Posted on 16 April 2012 by Ken Zino

GM is only recalling the models registered in Snow Belt states. Critics of such limited safety recalls maintain that they do not fix all the potentially affected vehicles. Dealers will tighten the wiper arm nuts. Continue reading →

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Younger Passengers Least Likely to Protest Distracted Driving

Posted on 16 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Young drivers are nearly three times as likely to report having been reading or sending a text or e-mail when such an incident occurred as compared to drivers age 25 and higher. In addition, drivers younger than 25 are two to three times more likely to drive while sending or reading a text message or email. Reports of texting while driving drop sharply as age increases. Continue reading →

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Fire Recall Covers More Rolls-Royce and BMW Turbo Models

Posted on 16 April 2012 by Ken Zino

The root cause is a circuit board in the Pierburg-supplied pump that can overheat. Several cases of engine compartment fires and totaled vehicles have been reported, according to an ongoing National Highway Traffic Safety Administration defect investigation. Continue reading →

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NSC Says Much Work Needs to be done on Distracted Driving. Again Urges Total ban on all Cell Phone Use

Posted on 13 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Determining the scope of the cell phone distracted driving problem remains a challenge. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and NSC claim the actual number of crashes involving cell phone distracted driving is higher, likely much higher, than reported figures. Continue reading →

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Hapless SEC Sues AutoChina for Alleged Stock Manipulation

Posted on 12 April 2012 by Ken Zino

AutoChina (OTC: AUTCF), China’s largest commercial vehicle sales, servicing, leasing, and company said the SEC’s complaint is without merit, thereby setting up an intricate and lengthy court battle with the watchdog that does not bark. SEC claimed that AutoChina senior executive and director Hui Kai Yan, a former AutoChina manager, and others fraudulently traded AutoChina’s stock to boost its daily trading volume. Continue reading →

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DOT Launches ‘Choose the Right Seat’ for Children in Cars

Posted on 10 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children ages one through 12 years old. From 2006 to 2010, 4,028 children aged 12 and younger were killed in crashes involving passenger vehicles. Another estimated 660,000 children were injured in crashes – a figure greater than the entire population of Boston, Massachusetts. Continue reading →

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Justice Department Seizes Counterfeit Chinese Sports Jerseys

Posted on 10 April 2012 by Ken Zino

The Department of Justice has seized more than $896,000 in proceeds from the distribution of Chinese made counterfeit sports apparel and jerseys as the result of an investigation into the sale of bogus goods on commercial websites. The individuals involved, based in China, sold counterfeit professional and collegiate sports apparel, primarily counterfeit sports jerseys. Continue reading →

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Ford Recalls Focus for Defective Windshield Wipers

Posted on 10 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Ford Motor Company is recalling more than 140,000 Focus compact cars because the windshield wipers can fail. Model year 2012 Focus cars were built at the Michigan Assembly Plant without a proper seal on the wiring harness for the passenger-side windshield wiper motor. Continue reading →

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NHTSA Investigating Chevrolet Cruze and Jeep Wrangler Fires

Posted on 4 April 2012 by Ken Zino

There are three steps in the NHTSA recall process. P.E. – Preliminary Evaluation, E.A. – Engineering Analysis – and then a so-called ‘voluntary’ recall or rarely a NHTSA forced recall. Continue reading →

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G.S. Electech Guilty of Price Fixing Auto Parts

Posted on 3 April 2012 by Ken Zino

Including G.S. Electech, eight executives and four companies have now been charged and have agreed to plead guilty in the ongoing price fixing investigation so far. Three of the companies have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to pay criminal fines totaling more than $748 million. Seven of the executives have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to serve a total of more than 122 months in jail. Continue reading →

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Ruling against Chevron in $18 Billion Toxic Oil Waste Case

Posted on 30 March 2012 by Ken Zino

In February 2011, after an eight-year trial that produced 220,000 pages of evidence, an Ecuador court found Chevron liable for deliberately dumping more than 16 billion gallons of toxic waste into Amazon waterways when it operated in Ecuador from 1964 to 1992 under the Texaco brand. The dumping severely hurt indigenous groups and caused an outbreak of cancer and other diseases, according to the evidence. Continue reading →

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Honda Recalls 554,000 CR-V and Pilot SUVs for Bad Headlights

Posted on 30 March 2012 by Ken Zino

This headlight recall apparently mirrors an earlier Honda headlight recall on 143,083 model year 2007 and 2008 Fit vehicles because of a bad headlight switch, which caused the low-beams to fail and possibly start a fire. Continue reading →

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