A Box On Wheels – Recalled

I never did like the Nissan Cube hatchback. The vehicle looks like a box on wheels, but must appeal to some, because 51, 100 of them in North America have been recalled due to excessive fuel leakages during a rear collision.

The American National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says more fuel spills out during a rear-end crash than American standards allow. The vehicle is also known for being spun right onto its side in such a collision – though Nissan’s voluntary recall is only for the fuel problem.

One wonders just how safe this box on wheels really is, if an American safety standards test can toss it about like a tin can?

Maybe the NHTSA is giving the automakers a break? After all they have already endured far more recalls in the past two-years than in the entire history of the automobile. I mean safety isn’t really a big issue – that’s what air bags, seatbelts, and simply looking before you leap come into play.

It’s not as if Nissan is intentionally selling an unsafe vehicle just to make a buck.

Or is it?

The American government’s NHTSA has conducted the standard barrage of tests on the Nissan Cube hatchback, and concluded that the vehicle and its occupants can very well find themselves on their sides in the NHTSA’s standard 80 KM/HR rear-end crash test.

That’s just the car I want! Where can I line up?

Though I suppose anyone thinking this fashion trend box on wheels – it’s supposed to be a crossover between a minivan and a compact hatchback – might enjoy the ride from the side. The vehicle’s demographics are the young, hip and trendy recent college graduate crowd.

Whether or not those young, hip and trendy grads will survive their chosen vehicle-slash-fashion statement remains to be seen.

But hey, it only took Toyota about ten years to come clean and admit that deaths a decade ago were caused by poorly manufactured cars. Wait another decade and maybe we’ll know just how safe this box on wheels really is.

Sheesh – whatever happened to quality in today’s automotive world?

Related articles by Zemanta

• Nissan Cube recalled over fuel hazard (cbc.ca)
• Nissan recalls 51,100 hatchbacks in Canada, U.S. (ctv.ca)
• Nissan recalling 51,100 Cube hatchbacks in Canada, U.S. (theglobeandmail.com)
• Nissan recalls 51,100 hatchbacks in Canada and U.S. (thestar.com)
• Nissan recalls 46,000 Cubes over fuel spillage (sfgate.com)

Anti-Idling Laws Environmental Time Wasted

Politicos in Canada’s largest city are debating whether to follow the lead of some surrounding municipalities, and put in place 60-second anti-idling laws.

The proposed law would mean anyone who pulled over, and left their vehicle engine running for one whole minute in Toronto, Canada, could be charge with excess idling, and be handed a traffic ticket. The proposed fine is $125CDN.

Politicians see anti-idling laws as an environmental way to raise some green – they reduce the number of cars idling on our city streets, while pumping in more revenues to the city in the form of fines paid by offenders.

What the proposed anti-idling law really is, is another cash grab by our city’s politicians.

Anti-idling laws can work – provided the time set on them is reasonable. Giving people a mere 60 seconds – one minute – to turn off their vehicle is ridiculously short.

If you stop to pick up your spouse and kids, and help load up their bags, toys and other things, if you didn’t turn off your car, you’d be charged $125CDN easily.

Helping your elderly relatives into or out of the family car could just as quickly cost you a $125CDN anti-idling fine, as they often take more time to do the things we take for granted.

Regardless of the short time-span for the proposed anti-idling law, laws such as these actually aren’t as environmentally-friendly as you think.

Oh reducing vehicle idle times does cut the amount of pollution being spewed out into the atmosphere, especially when done on a grand scale.

But an even better investment of our tax dollars would be funding green transportation alternatives. Investing in stricter vehicle emissions such as California does in the USA is a start.

Even better, would be mandating hybrid, electric or alternative fuelled green vehicles on our streets – which can be done. It’s just our politicians lack the courage, and enjoy the kickbacks from the petroleum industry and automotive industry lobbyists too much to really make a stand for the environment.

If we phased out gas-powered vehicles over time, the same way we phased out lead-based fuels in the 1970’s – then automakers would be forced to manufacture and sell vehicles which were truly green.

And then anti-idling laws would be a thing of the past, because a truly environmentally-friendly vehicle, is a zero-emission vehicle.

Zero-emission vehicles exist, just the oil and gas industry is so powerful they keep these green forms of transportation out of sight. We’ve seen fully functional electric cars, motorcycles and bikes, which produce zero-emissions. Solar-powered vehicles and hydrogen-powered ones are also zero-emission ones, but these do have some limitations to overcome. But if more research was being done on these – thanks to governments mandating environmental modes of transportation – these obstacles may be overcome.

Our lawmakers – our politicians – have the power to do the right thing, by making and enforcing laws which benefit us and our planet.

It is just a matter of getting our politicians weaned-off the kickbacks from the powerful oil and automotive sectors long enough to smell the roses on the green side of the fence.

And that’s going to take a lot more hard work – as money sometimes smells better than roses.

Related articles by Zemanta

• EU unveils green car action plan (businessgreen.com)
• Can the Automotive Industry Change its Stripes? (blogs.hbr.org)
• Cruise Car - Solar Impact (slideshare.net)
• China's Carmakers Court Japanese Engineers to Boost Exports (businessweek.com)
• European Electric Car Strategy Calls for Charging Stations Continent-Wide (cleantechies.com)

Where Did We Drop the Ball?

Today another major automaker announced an extremely large recall, begging the question – where did we drop the ball?

Toyota has been riddled with massive recalls worldwide for most of their vehicles, some manufactured over a decade ago, and affecting almost 200 million vehicles.
Not to be out done, the other automakers have also had large recalls, the latest happening today, as Mazda announced the recall of 90,000 vehicles with faulty parts.

Where did we drop the ball?

Yes, I mean WE.

We are the consumers that pay our hard earned coin to purchase these defective, hastily made shoddy products which could – and in the case of Toyota’s recalls HAVE allegedly – killed. We are the ones STILL purchasing these defective, hastily made shoddy products. We keep coming back for more, despite being given the rumps ass of quality.

Where did we drop the ball?

If we didn’t continue to purchase products from companies which obviously don’t make quality products, the wheels of the economy would rightly roll on over these companies, clearing a path for companies which do make products worthy of our hard earned coin.

Problem is, when it comes to the big ticket items like houses, cars, even fridges, stoves and cell phones, there are only a handful of companies which produce these products.

Where did we drop the ball?

We let things slide to the point where competition really doesn’t exist, so the few companies involved in these fields are free to do whatever they want. Call ‘em free range evil corporations – there is no competition, so they are free to run around and do as they please. Unlike free range livestock, they never are slaughtered – but the evil twist – they do the slaughtering instead.

Where did we drop the ball?

We, the consumers get slaughtered by free range evil corporations. Their God-complex-driven leaders probably gather in luxury exclusive resorts, to discuss how to maintain control over us simple folks.

Where did we drop the ball?

People get into their cars, not knowing if the brake pedal will work when they really need it. We are constantly bombarded with recalls of products which have high lead levels, and could prove toxic to our young. Family pets have died worldwide because of dangerous ingredients put into pet food. The food supply for us humans isn’t any safer, with constant e coli, salmonella and other bacterial hazards forcing the recall of foodstuffs the world over. There are concerns about most major products, yet nothing really is ever done, and we continue to purchase these things freely, openly, and without really thinking about it.

Where did we drop the ball?

Maybe it is time to start thinking – really thinking – about the products and services we pay for with our hard earned coin?

Related articles by Zemanta

• Mazda recalls 90,000 vehicles (cnn.com)
• Toyota Documents Show It Knew of Pedal Flaws in 2006 (Update1) (businessweek.com)
• Toyota hit by new safety fears as Lexus sales suspended in America (guardian.co.uk)
• Lexus GX 460 Rated 'Do Not Buy,' Toyota Halts Sale (abcnews.go.com)
• Toyota testing safety of all its SUVs (cbc.ca)
• Toyota Conducts Safety Tests on All SUV Models (abcnews.go.com)
• Toyota to Supply Mazda with Hybrid Technology (dailyfinance.com)

Once Upon a Time, the Automakers Actually Cared About You and Me

If Henry Ford were alive today, he’d be shaking his head in disgust.

As if last week’s appearance in front of an American courtroom for Toyota’s president to answer questions about his company’s overabundance of safety recalls wasn’t enough bad press for the auto industry, General Motors issued a recall of its own affecting 1.3 million vehicles sold around the world.

Recalls affecting millions of vehicles from automotive manufacturers are becoming an all too common occurrence. It wasn’t all that long ago when a recall only affected a few thousand vehicles from one plant in one country.

Toyota has recalled over 8.5 million vehicles from around the world – that’s the equivalent of about one vehicle for every man, woman and child in New York City.
Wasn’t it Ford’s slogan a few years back “Quality is Job 1?”

Quality has gone the way of the Dodo bird – or at least it appears to be extinct as we witness these continuous streams of recalls from the auto giants.

Perhaps during the recent economic recession, the automakers cut costs by shopping for the best prices on the bits and pieces to put their products together, instead of basing their decisions on the quality we have come to depend upon?

It wouldn’t be the first time a major company has cut corners to save a buck. We consumers have been known to shop for the best deals too – just look at the line-ups at your local store which sells everything for a dollar.

Ever get a light bulb or set of batteries to power your portable radio at the local Dollar Store? Sure you may have got a steal of a deal, only paying a dollar, but chances are within a few hours, that light bulb or set of batteries won’t be working anymore.

That’s the price you pay when you go on the cheap. Quality goes by the wayside, and soon you’re sitting in the dark without any radio.

Though when the automakers cut corners, and their quality dips, people get scared, hurt or even die in motor vehicle accidents.

General Motors recent recall is based on 1,100 customer complaints, which include 14 crashes and one reported injury. Though those numbers may be higher, as many people don’t report minor accidents or injuries to their insurance companies, fearing their insurance rates will go up.

Toyota’s larger recall has resulted in the deaths of at least five people so far, but as many of the cars and trucks are still on the road with these problems, that number too may climb.

Yes, in an economy as brutal as we’ve seen of late, people aren’t as quick to go out and purchase big ticket items like houses and cars. So automakers suffer in a slumping economy. But then again – at least in General Motors case – they secured government bail-out funds to see them through the rough economy.

What it really comes down to is corporate culture. General Motors has grown mega-large, and as with many mega-large companies, after a while they don’t care about quality, because they don’t have too. What are a few thousand accidents or injuries when you have millions of other customers to count on?

On the surface, these big companies put on their game face, telling us all about their innovations in safety, security and customer care. They tell us how they will do whatever it takes to get and keep our business.

But all these companies really are interested in is your money.

In both the Toyota and General Motors recalls, it took thousands of customer complaints before either company even considered there was anything wrong with their products. That’s one of the allegations against Toyota which the American government is investigating – the amount of time it took them to recognize problems with their vehicles and to act on those problems, based on the number of complaints, injuries and deaths.

Companies that truly care about their customers don’t wait until thousands of their customers complain – they act immediately.

If Toyota and General Motors had shown the least bit of concern for their customers by acting immediately on complaints, neither would be facing the public relations disaster they are now both in the midst of.

But maybe a little dirt on their squeaky clean images is in order – because now at least, we know just how little value they place on you and me.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Ford sales jump; outsells GM on strong car demand (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Toyota to spend $250M on workers at Calif. plant (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• In G.M. Sales, Signs of Some Gains From Toyota's Woes (nytimes.com)
• Nissan recalls 540,000 vehicles (guardian.co.uk)
• Toyota woes could lead to tougher regulations (sfgate.com)

Toyota’s Problems Not Continuing – It’s a Decade’s Old Problem Come to a Head

Five people have died in the United States due to automaker Toyota’s decade-long failure to recognize and fix faulty accelerators in their vehicles.

American Federal prosecutors claim the automaker hesitated to respond to 2,600 complaints about sudden unintended acceleration of some of its vehicles made by the company’s customers between 2000 and 2010.

Toyota’s top brass all over the world – including the supreme Toyota commander, Akio Toyoda, the company’s president – have apologized publicly to their customers. Toyoda is going to be speaking at an American-led Congressional hearing today, in response to his company’s worldwide recall of over 8.5 million vehicles.

The criminal investigation in the United States also claims the automaker failed to investigate the electronics behind the problem, ultimately charging that Toyota failed to protect the public.

Toyota’s reputation has long been built on the company’s safety and reliability – since the 1980’s the Toyota Camry has had one of the highest re-sell values when compared to all cars sold in North America.

That specific model’s re-sale value, and the company’s reputation as a safe and reliable automaker may have been forever changed.

And rightly so.

You don’t produce over 8.5 million bad apples and expect to be considered the most reliable apple dealer – so don’t expect 8.5 million potentially rotten vehicles to lead to being considered the most reliable vehicle manufacturer.

And it only took over ten years for Toyota to act on those 8.5 million problems.
A lot can happen in ten years, and unfortunately, it appears that Toyota has fallen into a trap which many large companies have also fallen into – cutting corners to save money.

There are always cheaper alternatives for producing products; however something is always sacrificed for the lower cost. At the most base level, maybe you won’t be able to get the same color, or texture of finish on the paint, or maybe the chrome just won’t be as shiny. At the highest level, maybe someone will die because the product just isn’t as safe.

But the chances of someone dying are so slim, while the cost savings so great . . .

Five deaths have been linked to Toyota’s faulty accelerator systems. Granted, when you consider only five people have died despite the recent rash of recalls affecting almost every Toyota sold worldwide since 2000, totaling over 8.5 million vehicles – five is a small number compared to 8.5 million vehicles.

But any deaths – even just one – so that Toyota’s executives can pad their pocketbooks with more profits, is one death too many.

I naïve hope that the American justice system will slap down Toyota hard, banning all future imports until every single Toyota built and sold from 2000 to present has been inspected, repaired and certified in writing by the automaker as 100 percent safe.

But we all know how this story will end – it’s happened before and will happen again, as big companies continue to trim costs without thinking or possibly even caring about the consequences.

Toyota will probably be hit with a large fine, maybe in the millions of dollars, and a warning to ensure this sort of thing doesn’t happen again.

There will be numerous pages filled with processes and procedures the automaker – and possibly other automakers – must document and follow.

But the fine is chump change to Toyota, and following a documented process is just another rubber stamp solution, which may or may not really be enacted in reality. These things tend to just create more files sitting on a shelf collecting dust than anything else.

The public backlash against Toyota is where the real damage may come – as Toyota customers think twice before purchasing their next vehicle from the ailing automaker. We won’t know just how much of an impact the public’s reaction to Toyota’s poor products have had on the company for some time – it could take months, maybe even years before we see any signs of a backlash in the marketplace.

Then again, in our information overloaded universe, our minds tend to have a short attention span, and once the dust settles and all of the recalls, criminal investigations, charges (if any) and other negative press falls off the radar, many may forget all about this, and end up driving away in a brand new Toyota vehicle.

If we are lucky, this won’t happen again, but then again, history has a nasty habit of repeating itself. So the one day you forget about all the recalls, the five people that died, the criminal investigation in the United States, and all the apologies from Toyota’s higher-ups, could be the one day when your brakes fail, as your car continues to pick up speed, and you see your life flash before your eyes just before you die in a fireball of twisted metal, broken glass, and burnt auto parts.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Report: Toyota bragged about saving $100M by avoiding, limiting recalls (autoblog.com)
• Toyota boss Akio Toyoda apologises ahead of US grilling (guardian.co.uk)
• Toyoda: Our rush to grow led to safety issues (money.cnn.com)
• Toyota adds more models to list getting brake override systems (autoblog.com)
• Toyota Canada to add brake upgrade to more models (canada.com)
• Embattled Toyota ties safety issues to speedy growth (windsorstar.com)
• Toyota president: We grew too big, too fast in US (thenewstribune.com)

Talk Time Not Drive Time

Canada’s largest province is going hands-free – sort of.

Drivers in Ontario, Canada, will face fines up to $500CDN if they watch, listen, text, type, email, dial, or talk on any hand-held device while driving. This ban includes all cell phones, smart phones, portable video games and DVD players.

The ban on using hand-held devices takes effect Oct. 26, but begins with a gradual three-month public education grace period, where offenders will be sternly warned, but not fined. Repeat offenders may not only be fined, but could also be charged with additional infractions, such as careless driving, which adds more fines, lost demerit points, and the possibility of being tossed in jail.

Hands-free devices are not included in the ban. However, the province doesn’t condone their use, saying drivers need their full attention focused on the operation of their vehicles.

Bravo Queen’s Park – the province’s legislative assembly -- for taking the right steps towards protecting us all.

Image via Wikipedia

Over 50 countries already have banned yacking on your cell phone (or other mobile device) while driving, because statistics show an increase in accidents involving those on these communication marvels. Other jurisdictions which have banned using hand-held devices while driving include Quebec, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada, and California and New York states in the U.S.A.

A study by the VirginiaTech Transportation Institute says truck drivers are 23 times more likely to have a crash if they are sending a text message, when compared to drivers not “texting.” The study also found that “texting” took a driver’s focus off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds – that’s enough time to travel the length of a football field at about 60KM/hour.

Another study by Clemson University found drivers that text message and use their iPods are 10 percent more likely to accidentally drift into another lane or off the road completely.

There are already far too many bad drivers out on our public roads, giving them the ability to talk – or worse – text message – while driving is no less dangerous than giving a kid a loaded shot gun and saying, “have fun.”

Granted, driving is second nature to most of us, we do it so often, we sometimes forget that it actually involves a lot of muscle control, attention to details, and quick thinking – just to name a few of the many skills we employ while sitting behind the wheel.

And if you believe some of the hype, those radicals calling for cell phone bans while driving compare it to drinking and driving. However that analogy is far fetched, although cell phones distract drivers, they don’t physically change a driver’s cognitive abilities, as alcohol does by slowing the firing of neurons in the brain.

There are so many distractions to motorists – from the traffic around them, to the radio and CD player in their own vehicle, to the numerous signs, billboards, and pedestrians surrounding them.

Add in the ability to check your voicemail, text message your friends about getting together after work, or even trying to pick up members of the opposite sex on a singles dating chat line (as one teenage girl was doing, when she rolled her dad’s brand new four-wheeled drive BMW a few months back) – can you really oppose this new legislation in Ontario?

Related articles by Zemanta

• Ont. cellphone ban for drivers delayed to Oct. 26 (ctv.ca)
• Cellphone ban while driving in effect Oct. 26 (thestar.com)
• CAA urging motorists to stop talking/texting while driving before law kicks in (newswire.ca)
• Stop sign ahead for texting while driving? (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Sask. to ban texting, cellphone use while driving (cbc.ca)
• Federal Summit Eyes Crackdown On Texting While Driving (mobile.slashdot.org)
• Hands-free calls no safer for drivers: MD (canada.com)
• Texting - The New Way to Measure Your Technological IQ (jordansdaily.blogspot.com)