• toyota,ford,gm? (水城百事)

by cars, Thursday, March 11, 2010, 22:36

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Despite Toyota, highways safer than ever

Just a few months ago, my daughter bought her very first car: a 1989 Toyota Corolla. Soon after, Toyota recalled millions of vehicles, including some newer Corolla models.

It's enough to make anyone extremely nervous (especially the parent of a teenage driver), but as Shawn Langlois writes in his Ahead of the Curve column today, the highways are safer than they've ever been, with the rate of traffic fatalities in 2009 falling to its lowest level ever.

Why the good news? For one thing, in economic downturns, people drive less. No surprise there, particularly given how many people are unemployed and no longer commuting. Fewer people on the road mean fewer accidents.

Also, despite all the scary news of late, cars are safer than they've ever been. As Langlois points out in his story, 2,600 complaints of sudden acceleration were lodged against Toyota from 2000 through January 2010. This from a company that's produced many millions of cars in those years.

And, not that it really makes one feel safer, but Toyota is not alone in these types of complaints. Ford got close to 3,600 complaints for the same problem in that period; and General Motors received 2,250 complaints, according to Langlois's story.

Knock on wood, but so far the only problem we've had with my daughter's car is an occasionally unreliable starter. The car is 21 years old, after all.

-- Andrea Coombes , Personal Finance editor

Rampaging Toyotas obscure highway safety strides

For drivers living in fear of the rabid Toyotas prowling America's roadways, the horse-and-buggy era is looking pretty good. But, in reality, there has never been a safer time to get behind the wheel.
See Ahead of the Curve.

CARS

Toyota complaints surged after first recall

Public records at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show complaints about speed-control problems with Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles have surged since the Japanese car maker announced in September it would recall millions of vehicles to fix floor mats that can pin the gas pedal in an open position.
See story on complaints surged after first recall.

U.S. plans new car-safety rules

The Obama administration is considering new rules on the design of automobiles, including possible requirements that cars be equipped with advanced-brake technology and "black boxes" that record crash data, the top U.S. highway-safety regulator said Thursday.
See story about new car-safety rules.