Despite extensive pre-production testing and dramatically improved quality of new cars and trucks these days, recalls are still very much a fact of life for motorists. Perhaps it's because vehicles have also become so much more complex, with more things to go wrong. In any case, each time a recall is announced most owners probably raise ... Read More

Today's cars can perform a lot more functions than just getting you from one place to another. Through telematics, the marriage of computers and telecommunications systems, manufacturers are offering a variety of vehicle features providing greater safety and security, hands-free communications and wireless access to a wide range of information and entertainment. Read More

In a car nowadays, this saying takes on a whole new meaning. Recent statistics indicate that up to 20% of vehicular accidents are caused by drivers engaging in distracted driving behaviors. In distracted-driving accidents involving fatalities, up to 18% were related to cell phone use. The age at which this issue is most prevalent is the under-20 group Read More

Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death among teens. Research shows that drivers under the age of 20 are more likely to exhibit behaviors such as distracted driving that contribute to accidents. In addition, inexperience, lack of maturity, alcohol use, speeding, talking to friends and texting all exacerbate the problem. Read More

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, almost 20% of all car crashes and 12% of near-misses are caused by either driver exhaustion or flat-out falling asleep behind the wheel. This accounts for nearly 100,000 deaths or injuries each year. In 2009, over 33,000 people were fatally injured in car accidents. Read More

Child Safety Seats They may squirm, wriggle, kick and scream, but young kids have to be buckled into child safety seats. Every state has laws on its books that require it - and with good reason: the leading cause of deaths among children three to 14 years old is vehicle crashes. It's estimated that nearly 9,000 young Read More

Anti-lock Brakes (ABS) Slam on the brakes during an emergency and chances are your car will become a wild ride as it skids down the road, especially if it’s rain-slicked or icy. Locking up the wheels - or skidding - is dangerous not only because it increases the distance before the car stops, but also because the driver loses the ability to steer. An ABS system pumps the brakes automatically, many times a second, to prevent lockup... Read More

Car Size Once upon a time, before NHTSA, air bags, three-point seat belts and all the rest, if you wanted the safest car you went out and bought the biggest car you could find and depended on its mass to protect you. Well, the laws of physics haven’t changed. Modern technology may have made small cars safer, but if you’re going to be involved in a crash your survival odds remain higher in a large car. In one Read More

Automakers began installing air bags in relatively large numbers in 1990, first in the steering wheel to protect the driver and later in the dashboard to protect the front-seat passenger. NHTSA now mandates that every new light truck have these dual air bags. Despite that fact that some children and adults have been injured or... Read More