Safety

Talk about a way to beat traffic.

Actually, you won't be able to take off out of gridlock in Terrafugia's flying car, but at least you'll be able to drive it on roads to the nearest airport. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently granted special exemptions for the Transition "roadable aircraft."

The exemptions clear the way for shipping to begin from Terrafugia's Massachusetts plant following testing. The flying car is slated to enter production this year, with shipping in 2012.

The NHTSA stipulations involve the type of tires and windscreen the Transition will use as a land vehicle. The tires are rated for highway speeds and the windshield will be made of polycarbonate materials instead of automotive safety glass to save weight and prevent shattering in a bird strike.

Terrafugia says the Transition, which notched its maiden flight in 2009, is "the first (light airplane) to incorporate automotive safety features such as a purpose-built energy absorbing crumple zone, a rigid carbon fiber occupant safety cage, and automotive-style driver and passenger airbags." … Read more

Toyota Motor Corp. today announced the recall of about 45,500 Highlander Hybrid and 36,700 Lexus RX 400h vehicles from the 2006 and 2007 model years and sold in the United States.

According to Toyota, the vehicles could lose power or stall completely because of a transistor inside the hybrid system's inverter that could overheat.

The problem involves certain transistors inside the Intelligent Power Module on the control boards in some of the vehicles which "were inadequately soldered."

If this were to occur, various warning lamps will illuminate on the instrument panel, Toyota said, and the … Read more

The latest telescoping steering wheels extend and retract to make it more comfortable for people of all sizes to drive, but that doesn't help much if you have trouble getting behind the wheel in the first place. To make it easier to enter and exit vehicles, TRW Automotive is developing a collapsible steering wheel that retracts entirely into the dashboard.

Renderings of the new dashboard technology show a steering wheel with two handles attached to the steering column. When not in use, the handles collapse around the column, which retracts into the dashboard. By opening up more space in the cockpit, the retractable steering wheel should make it easier for people to get in and out of automobiles. The steering wheel automatically deploys into driving position when the driver starts the car, and like adjustable seats with memory options, the steering wheel position preference can be saved. … Read more

Ford will make its new inflatable seat belt an option on the Flex and Lincoln vehicles starting next summer.

The high-tech pretensioner contains an airbag that deploys in the event of an accident and expands to cover five times more of the occupant's torso than a traditional belt. By diffusing crash pressure over a larger area, the new belt helps reduce the risk of injury to backseat passengers.

"This advanced restraint system is designed to help reduce head, neck, and chest injuries for rear-seat passengers, often children, and older passengers who can be more vulnerable to such injuries," said Sue Cischke, Ford group vice president of Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering. … Read more

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released its annual list of cities with the most car thefts, and Fresno, Calif., tops the list. In fact, eight cities in the top 10 are in California, with the remaining two in Washington state.

Right behind Fresno are two other Central Valley cities, Modesto and Bakersfield. Sacramento, Stockton, and an area including San Francisco, Oakland, and Fremont also make the list. Spokane, Wash., comes in at No. 4. Surprisingly, Los Angeles is all the way down at 23.

Here are the top 10 cities for car theft in 2010:

Fresno, Calif.

Modesto, Calif.

Bakersfield-Delano, Calif.

Spokane, Wash.

Vallejo-Fairfield, Calif.

Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville, Calif.

Stockton, Calif.

Visalia-Porterville, Calif.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif.

Yakima, Wash.… Read more

Volvo is perhaps best known for protecting human lives in and outside of vehicles, and now the automotive safety stalwart is taking its safety mission one step further by developing technology that will help protect the lives of animals.

The new anticollision system is based on the company's Pedestrian Detection with Full Auto Brake technology that first appeared in vehicles last year. It uses a radar sensor and an infra-red camera to detect animals within the vehicle's range, and alerts the driver to their presence. If the driver doesn't react to the alerts, the car will engage … Read more

When you run out of gas, you basically have two choices: hoof it to the nearest gas station to fill up a canister, or ask roadside assistance to bring the gas to you. Electric vehicles with a dead battery don't have that option, unless you're in Japan.

Nissan and the Japan Automobile Federation, the Japanese version of AAA, have launched a mobile battery charging unit to help stranded EV drivers on the road. The trial service is an attempt to curb range anxiety until EV charging infrastructure catches up to its gasoline counterpart. It will also "create … Read more

On a cloudy San Francisco day, a Ford Explorer followed two Ford Fiestas. The lead Fiesta slammed on its brakes, and before the second Fiesta reacted, warning lights went off in the Explorer, alerting the driver to the situation ahead.

The Explorer's apparent precognition was born of technology, a combination of Wi-Fi and GPS. The lead Fiesta used this technology to tell the Explorer that its driver had slammed on the brakes. The Explorer received this information before the driver of the second Fiesta in the lineup could react, and dutifully used warning lights and sounds to tell its … Read more

Toyota today announced a voluntary safety recall of about 52,000 2001 through 2003 Prius models in the U.S. to replace the electric power-steering pinion shaft attachment nuts.

According to Toyota, there is a possibility that the nuts securing the pinion shaft in the steering gear box assembly may become loose "if the steering wheel is repeatedly and strongly turned to the full-lock position."

The driver could, over time, notice that more effort is needed in steering when making a left turn, the company said.

Toyota dealers will make the necessary repairs, free of charge, by installing … Read more