Auto Trends

Tacoma Sale 018, originally uploaded by roverboy

Toyota has announced today that it will be recalling a total of 3.8 million of its vehicles, including the 2007-2010 Camry, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2004-2009 Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma, 2007-2010 Tundra, 2007-2010 Lexus ES350, 2006-2010 Lexus IS250, and IS350.

Their greatest number of recalls prior to this was nearly 900,000 vehicles in 2005, due to front suspension defects on their Tacoma, Tundra, Sequoia, Landcruiser, and 4-Runner (May 2001- December 2003).

The 2005 issue was a serious issue involving the ball joints which tended to wear quicker than expected, causes steering issues, that could lead to a loss of control of the vehicle. Today’s recall, is a serious one, yet involves such a simple fix, that just about any consumer should be able to handle this one on their own.

The process of recall repair is as simple as these three steps:

1. Walk out to Toyota vehicle and open drivers side door.

2. Reach down and grab the drivers-side floor mat, and yank it out.

3. Do not put mat back in vehicle!

This simple recall is due to an issue reported by Toyota that involves the drivers-side mat binding itself underneath the accelerator pedal, causing it to snag and interfere with normal vehicle operation (mainly, unwanted acceleration). These accessory mats are reportedly too large for the floor area, and have already caused four occupant deaths in at least one Lexus ES.

This will be Toyota’s largest recall in its history as an automotive manufacturer, and could very well also be one of the simplest recall fixes in history! Of course, this do-it-yourself fix is only temporary, as Toyota will replace the mats once the recall notices are official. How much this will cost Toyota is unknown, but the real fear is how much it could damage their brand recognition for the future.

Source: The Car Connection

Ford’s New Ecoboost Engine, originally uploaded by CC Chapman

Talk at Ford has suggested that by 2012, they will offer a small engine alternative for just about every vehicle they manufacturer. This includes even the Ford F-150, which is slated to receiving an eco-boost V-6 somewhere down the not-so-distant road.

The 3.5-liter Eco-Boost (263 horsepower base) has already made its appearance with the Ford Taurus. It has proven itself worthy of no less than about 365 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque, once properly twin-turboed, as in the 2010 SHO edition.

What is the hot talk right now however, is the upcoming 2.0 liter Eco-Boost, which is slated at 230 horsepower, 240 lb-ft of torque. With half the capacity (liter) of the Mustang’s ancient Cologne, Germany 4.0-liter V-6, the 2.0 not only provides 20 more horsepower (compared to 210), but the exact same about of low end grunt (a.k.a torque).

While some say that the 2.0 would make a suitable economical rival to Chevrolet’s 3.5-liter Camaro V-6, I highly doubt America is ready for another 4-cylinder turbo Mustang just yet. The Mustang is already rumored to be set for a 3.7-liter upgrade. The Fusion is also questionable as to whether or not it could receive the 2.0, as it is already overflowing with engine choices, such as the 2.5-liter I-4, 2.5-liter hybrid (electric/gas), 3.0-liter V-6 FlexFuel, and the 3.5-liter.

The Ford Focus, Fiesta, Edge, and even the Escape/Mariner may see the new 2.0-liter option within the next two years, although the Focus may also be offered with a 1.4-liter Eco-Boost with 130 horsepower. Ultimately, the 2.0-liter Eco-Boost is set to replace the current 3.5-liter V-6 as the base engine for most everything in Ford’s mid-sized lineup.

The focus (the direction, not the car) at Ford continues to be the belief that smaller is better, and the Eco-Boost turbocharging is only the icing on the cake!

Accident after 9 hours with a drivers license, originally uploaded by Darshan Shankar

Last Friday, reports of a new study suggested that teenagers driving their own vehicle, were more likely to get into an accident than a teen driving a parents borrowed vehicle. While these types of studies always have hidden factors that coerce the findings, in this case, parental monitoring appears to be one of the most significant factors in a teenagers safe driving habits.

The study was funded by State Farm Insurance, and carried out by the researchers at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. It was based on a national survey of 5,500 teens from 68 high schools, grades nine through 11. In a nutshell, the research suggests that when a teenager is the owner of their own vehicle, they feel a sense of entitlement to driving that can often lead to increased reckless behavior.

For instance, when in their own vehicle, students in the study were more likely to feel entitled to talk on their cell phone or drink alcohol, then when driving a borrowed vehicles with clear guidelines. To put this to statistics, with over 250,000 teenagers injured in accidents every year (5,000 deaths), those who are driving a borrowed vehicle (with rules attached to this privilege) were 30% less likely to use a cell phone and 70% less likely to drink while driving.

What this study should ultimately promote, is parents who will remain a (pardon the pun) “driving force” in their teenagers lives. Parents who do this, have more control over their teenager, are better able to provide clear ground rules, and can monitor their whereabouts more effectively. This is because the teen must first get their parents permission to borrow the car, tell them where they are going, who they will be going with, and what they will do once they get there.

Driving in this scenario is considered a privilege, not an entitlement.

Monitoring teen drivers not only boosts their chances for survival, but the survival of all those who are reading this article. Not to mention the good driving habits this will instill later in life, making today’s teenagers, better adult drivers later on. Enforce those rules parents, nobody else is going to!

Source: Examiner.com