-
Recent Posts
- Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League to Run at Imola!
- Bridgewater Interiors Workers Ratify New UAW Contract
- Mass Production eVTOL Soon? Joby Aviation and Toyota JV
- More Ford Motor Recalls for Rollaways ~740,000 Affected
- IMSA Watkins Glen: Cadillac, Corvette, Porsche Run Solid
- Sudden EV Power Loss – Toyota BZ, Lexus RZ, Subaru Solterra Recalled
- Milestones – 15 Million Honda Accords Sold in U.S.
- UAW to “Practice Pickett” Tomorrow at Woodward MPC
- June 2026 U.S. Auto Sales Forecast Up 3.6%
- BMW Expands Factory Use of Humanoid Robots
- “Disasters” – UAW on NAFTA, U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreements
- Connectivity Snags Haunt Improvements in New-Vehicle Quality
- Trumped! – 2026 Vehicles Sales Forecasts All Down
- Annals of Marketing – Chevrolet Heartbeat of America Revived
- Milestones – Nissan Canton Builds 1 Millionth Frontier Truck
Recent Comments
- Magna International on Magna International Posts Q1 2026 EPS Loss of $0.04
- Council on Foreign Relations on Iran and Strait of Hormuz on AAA – Pump Gasoline Prices Still Soaring
- Autocrat on Stellantis Subordinated Perpetual Hybrid Bonds on Stellantis Posts Full Year 2025 Loss of €22.3B
- Michigan Governor Whitmer on Pew – Confidence in Trump Dips, Fewer Support His Policies
- Porsche Motorsport Daytona Victory on Daytona 24 Hours – Old and New Stars Getting Ready to Run
Archives
Meta
Category Archives: safety
Computer Bugs – Ford Launches New Certified Glass Network
Ford has apparently discovered the latest bugs in computerized vehicles. They are not the ones that smear your windshield. Continue reading
NLRB – National Labor Relations Act Protects Immigrants
Today, National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo released a new protocol to advance immigrant worker protections to freely exercise rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and safely participate in NLRB investigations. Continue reading
Ford Recalls Explorer, Super-Duty F-Series for Safety Defects
Ford Motor is recalling 2020-2021 Explorer Police FHEV, Explorer Police 3.3L, and 2020-2022 Explorer 2.3L RWD, 3.0L PHEV, 3.3 L FHEV, and 3.0L ST gasoline vehicles because the rear-axle horizontal mounting bolt may fracture and cause the driveshaft to disconnect.
In another recall, Ford is recalling 2020 Super Duty F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 vehicles equipped with 6.7L diesel engines. A washer within the vehicle’s transmission can disintegrate, causing metallic debris to become lodged in the ‘Park’ mechanism. Debris lodged within the ‘Park’ mechanism may prevent the vehicle from achieving or holding ‘Park,’ increasing the risk of a vehicle roll-away and a crash.
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov. Continue reading
Green Autonomous Mobility at Michigan State University
The Spartan bus completed on-campus testing, which did not include written college admission tests. More than 650 test runs of its route during all hours of the day helped make the official deployment possible. As part of the process to accept passengers, validation of the bus, route and infrastructure was granted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It appears to be the first and only SAE Level-4 automated bus that has NHTSA approval. Continue reading
Stellantis Hackathon – Hardware Enhanced by Software
It’s the latest example of the direction that mobility tech companies, aka automakers, are taking as the industry moves from only “hardware” involving stamping, welding and bolting to software-defined vehicles. Many if not all automakers are racing to grow from their old blacksmithing ways. Continue reading
Ford Recalls 653,000 F-Series, Expeditions, Navigators for Bad Wipers – 18 Products Affected by Safety Defect
During August of 2021, Ford became aware of stripped wiper arm splines on certain Expedition vehicles as the defect was brought to Ford’s Critical Concern Review Group for review (CCRG). “Routine Ford monitoring of field data had identified reports related to driver or passenger wiper arms coming loose, not working, or detaching. Passenger and driver side wiper arms are independently attached to the wiper system linkage assembly. Several warranty reports contained technician comments indicating stripped splines in the wiper arms, as well as assembly alignment keys that fell out or were missing.” Ford said. Continue reading
EPA Sued to Set New Limits on Soot, Sulfur, Nitrogen Pollution
Plaintiffs appear to have a compelling case. According to the pleadings, EPA’s latest update and review of the welfare-based standards for sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides was in June 2012; new standards were due in June 2017. The EPA last updated the particulate matter welfare-based standards in March 2013, so new updates to those standards were due in March 2018. Continue reading
NLRB Sues Starbucks for Unfair Labor Practices
The lawsuit seeks immediate reinstatement of the three. Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act authorizes the National Labor Relations Board to seek injunctions against employers and unions in federal district courts to stop unfair labor practices where, due to the passage of time, the normal Board processes are likely to be inadequate to effectively remedy the alleged violations. Continue reading
IonQ, Hyundai Motor to Explore Quantum Computing for AVs
IonQ and Hyundai will look to for more efficient machine learning on quantum computers, as they can process enormous amounts of data faster and more accurately than classical systems. “Using a breakthrough in encoding images into quantum states, IonQ is already well underway in classifying 43 types of road signs using IonQ’s quantum processors,” the company claimed. The next phase will see the two companies apply IonQ’s machine learning data to Hyundai’s test environment and simulate various real-world scenarios. Continue reading
Tesla Recalls Half of 2021-22 Model Xs for Bad Airbags
As such, these vehicles with a major safety defect fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 226, “Ejection Mitigation.” All of the more than 7000 unsafe vehicles involved remain covered under the new vehicle warranty. Continue reading
Posted in customer satisfaction, recalls, safety
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, Ken Zino, nhtsa, Tesla Recalls
Leave a comment
FAA Awards Drone Research Grants to Seven Universities
The universities receiving grants are University of North Dakota, University of Kansas, Drexel University, The Ohio State University, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Mississippi State University and Oregon State University. Continue reading
Posted in aviation, safety, transportation
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, FAA Drone Research, Ken Zino
Leave a comment
Software – Automakers Out of Touch with Drivers and Safety
“Having a giant touchscreen interface is really about saving hardware costs by implementing everything in software,” says Blackie. “Recently, though, there’s been growing disquiet as years of ergonomic study and usability experience are abandoned in the rush to cram everything onto a single screen.” Continue reading
Stellantis to Consolidate Financial Services in China
The latest move comes after the restructuring of financial services in Europe and the United States. It is in keeping with its “asset light business model” developed in part given the extremely high cost of converting to electric and autonomous vehicles in what has become a global race for survival. Stellantis has plans for 75 new EV models by 2030. Continue reading
Posted in autonomous vehicles, electric vehicles
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, carlos tavares, Dongfeng, DPCAFC, Ken Zino
1 Comment
Court Upholds EPA on Imports from Chinese Vehicle Makers
Moreover the District Court also affirmed the $1,601,150 civil penalty assessed by the Administrative Law Judge. The challenge was brought by Taotao USA, Inc, Taotao Group Co., Ltd., and Jinyun County Xiangyuan Industry Co., Ltd. (plaintiffs). Continue reading
SEC Charges Autonomous Vehicle Supplier NVIDIA with Shoddy Disclosures
NVIDIA is a US-based artificial intelligence (AI) computing company that is a significant automotive supplier for an important building block in a network of several individual ECUs (Electronic control units) used in automated and driverless vehicles. It goes by the name Drive Pegasus. Continue reading →