Explosive Scale Of Takata Airbag Scandal
Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), said: 鈥淢anufacturers have worked in partnership with DVSA on a risk-based, phased approach, to recall models which may be at risk of faulty Takata airbags. 鈥淭his is a global issue related to component degradation over time, affecting different companies and many millions of vehicles. There have been no incidences of fault in the UK, however, and, due to the climatic conditions here the risk to consumers is very low. Sue Robinson, director of the National Franchised Dealers Association, said franchised dealers automatically check cars for recalls. What鈥檚 wrong with Takata airbags? Airbags inflate when an explosive charge fills them with gas. At the turn of the millennium, Takata started using the explosive ammonium nitrate, instead of tetrazole, in its airbags. Ammonium nitrate is far cheaper than tetrazole, but it is also more susceptible to heat and humidity. In hot and humid climates the ammonium nitrate tablets used in Takata airbags can break down over time and turn into powder, which makes the explosive process too powerful. This can cause the metal containers in which the explosives are stored to fracture when the airbag deploys, firing shrapnel at occupants. Armando Ortega from Yuma, Arizona, died in June last year after the Takata airbag in his 2002 Honda Civic malfunctioned in an accident. Ortega was struck by metallic shrapnel from the airbag, dying three days later. Honda confirmed the Civic鈥檚 airbag deployed defectively, and that 12 recall letters had been sent to previous owners of the car, which Ortega purchased less than three months prior to the accident. An estimated 24 people have been killed worldwide by Takata airbags. What should owners do? Has your car been affected by the Takata airbag scandal?
Modern display technology shows warnings in plain text (English for most of us) which is far more effective than the oft-indecipherable idiot lights of years past. Updates and module replacements add cost when compared to older cars, but when compared to costs for similar high-tech vehicles there is nothing on these cars that stands out. The technology in Bentley is shared to a significant degree with high end offerings from VW/Audi so the updates mostly follow patterns set in those higher volume car lines. When put in historical context the cost of maintaining and repairing the GT series is in line with or lower than previous offerings from Crewe. In other words, it鈥檚 expensive. And you get what you pay for, with a standard of luxury and performance unmatched in other cars. 10k to put your new purchase into shape, plus cosmetic repairs. 20k is high but not surprising. 5-10k for annual upkeep cost. When year hear someone say 鈥淚 drove this car two years and never had to do a thing . 鈥?remember there is no free lunch, and that person has (unknowingly or not) simply deferred a considerable amount of maintenance and that falls on you if you鈥檙e the new owner. John is a longtime technical consultant to the car clubs, and he鈥檚 owned and restored many fine British and German motorcars. Reading this article will make you smarter, especially when it comes to car stuff. So it's good for you. But don't take that too far - printing and eating it will probably make you sick.
Unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to test how it stacks up to its competition during our initial drive. How Does It Drive? The 2016 Honda Pilot offers a commendably smooth and controlled ride, even when equipped with the Elite trim's large 20-inch wheels (quite an accomplishment). It also feels notably smaller from behind the wheel than its competitors. Part of this is simply because of visual perception, but the tidier exterior dimensions, responsive steering and trick i-VTM4 all-wheel-drive system certainly contribute to a vehicle that makes you forget how big it is. We wouldn't go so far as to call a three-row crossover nimble, but for the segment, it's certainly one of the least cumbersome to drive, with a smooth, willing powertrain to boot. Given that the comparatively athletic Mazda CX-9 is getting on in years and suffers from subpar crash scores, the new Pilot could be the new, best choice for those transitioning from a smaller, nimbler car into a big mom-and-dad-mobile.
This means that we鈥檙e able to provide robust reliability ratings for hundreds of cars, as well as a brand-level reliability rating for everything else. You can use our research to make sure you don鈥檛 throw your money away on a car that will let you down. See our new and used car reviews. Even with a reliability rating of just two stars out of five for cars aged 0-3 years, the Discovery 4 is technically one of the most dependable Land Rovers we had results for. This should not fill you with confidence, though. But if your heart is still set on the Discovery, we would advise making sure you鈥檙e eligible for a courtesy car. Owners we heard from were left without their car for an average of five days while repairs took place. Does its reliability improve with age, and what鈥檚 the Discovery like to drive? See our expert Land Rover Discovery 4 review.
Jaguar Land Rover has announced plans to open a new engine factory in Wolverhampton, to make advanced technology, low-emission engines in the U.K. West Midlands businesses will benefit, with up to 750 highly-skilled engineering and manufacturing jobs to be created, as well as flow on employment also. The plant will be situated on a 297-acre site at the i54 business park in South Staffordshire, recently named as an enterprise zone site. As always, good news for one region, not so others. In this case some in South Wales - where the engines are currently made - had hoped to benefit, with the new plant being located there. I think the new location in Staffordshire makes sense. Hopefully Wales will benefit from other investments. The majority of JLR's current engine line-up is built in a dedicated Jaguar facility within Ford's Bridgend plant in South Wales as part of a tie-up between the two manufacturers. Jaguar and Land Rover were both owned by Ford until recently, but new owner Tata is now moving to greater independence on the engine front.
