JSwain

Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Traffic Tickets Have Become a Tax-Hack Pile-On

People with absolutely no friends in your state’s capital include terrorists, communists, smokers, and those cited for a driving offense. No politician with reelection on his or her mind would lift a finger to help out speeders and stoplight runners. Hey, they broke the law, they deserve whatever we give them, right? This political truth proved itself over and over again in the last decade as states rushed to patch holes in annual budgets by dumping more and more extraneous fees onto traffic tickets. As with a cigarette tax, a traffic-ticket surcharge generates little opposition from the assembled representatives, none of whom wants to be seen as representing the interests of lawbreakers. In Pennsylvania, fees have been tacked onto tickets for state police training, emergency medical services, the state’s judicial computer system, a fund to compensate people injured by medical negligence, and a program to provide legal services for the indigent. A $57 fine thus lands on your wallet as a $158.50 pile of random taxation. It’s worse in California, where a typical $100 fine pencils out to $490. Over the past 50 years, the State Assembly in Sacramento has run riot with traffic levies, the Los Angeles Times reporting that 80 percent of a traffic ticket’s bottom line has nothing to do with the actual offense. Among the add-ons: a fee to aid people with traumatic brain injuries, a fund to help victims of violent crimes, and a toll for the protection of state wildlife. Texas and Michigan have enacted “driver responsibility” programs that impose recurring fees above and beyond the initial fines for repeat offenders. In the Great Lakes State, drivers who amass seven points in two years are assessed a $100 fee each year and an extra $50 for any points accumulated above that. If you can’t provide proof of insurance by your court date, it’s another $400 in fees over two years. READ MORE ››

2016 Toyota Prius Caught Totally Naked Just Days Before Official Launch

2016 Toyota Prius

If you, like us, were hoping Toyota might find some way to make its new, fourth-generation Prius hybrid less like an amorphous vehicular tadpole, prepare to be disappointed. New photos leaked by Prius Club Malaysia show a pair of 2016 Toyota Priuses seemingly in transit via air on their way to the official launch event. They are totally free of camouflage, but also alarmingly free of improved styling. Officially, we are to wait until next week’s formal debut for our first look at the new Prius, but the photos published by Prius Club Malaysia and publicized by DPC Cars, Green Car Reports, and others mean that the car’s time is now.

It appears that when Toyota’s designers went searching for inspiration for the new Prius, they looked across the studio at the homely Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell sedan and . . . couldn’t look away. Lines, angles, and bulbous elements intersect all over the Prius’s body, and while these images are far from flattering, we’ll wait until we see the car from all angles to render our final judgment. Hopefully the hybrid’s promising-sounding technical details make up for the seemingly uninspiring visuals.

2016 Toyota Prius

One thing’s for certain, though, and that’s that the new hybrid will slip through the air with a minimum of effort; Toyota is shooting for 60 mpg with this one. One upside? The front-bumper license-plate holders pictured on these Priuses look like tiny Fu Manchu mustaches. Hey, everyone should try the Fu Manchu at least once.

The Unboring Minivan? 2017 Chrysler Town & Country Comes Into Clearer Focus

A fresh report from Automotive News has gathered many previous details on the 2017 Chrysler Town & Country and added some new tidbits to provide the clearest, most concise picture yet of the next-generation family hauler.

The industry paper expects the van to take styling cues from the 200-esque 700C concept, pictured above, which quietly debuted at the 2012 Detroit auto show with absolutely none of the typical PR offensive. If the new T&C does indeed look anything like the 700C, it would bring a radical look to a segment in which the Honda Odyssey’s “lightning-bolt” window line counts as outrageous.

Among the new bits: The T&C will receive hands-free, foot-operated side doors in addition to its liftgate (all falling under Open ’n’ Go branding); all three rows will offer USB ports for recharging; and Chrysler plans to add an onboard vacuum cleaner like that of the Odyssey. Offering lots of goodies will ensure the Town & Country is well-equipped to battle the Odyssey and Toyota Sienna when it becomes the only minivan in Fiat-Chrysler’s stable once the Dodge Grand Caravan—the van itself, not the nameplate—is discontinued after 2017.

Automotive News also re-asserts details we’ve heard before, such as the electric-motor-based all-wheel-drive system, the plug-in-hybrid variant that’s due by the end of 2016, and the new direct-injected V-6/nine-speed automatic combo that’s expected to dramatically increase fuel economy. The new minivan, AN says, will enter production next February in Windsor, Ontario, and we already know it will start at around $26,000. Expect to first see it at this fall’s L.A. auto show or in January at the Detroit show.

The New Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Is Amazing, But Can It Autocross?

The Corvette Z06 and I go way back. A 2002 Z06 was the first test car I ever wrote about, back when having 405 horsepower warranted carrying a badge that read “405 HP.” Those early cars were voted “Most Likely to Have Their Titanium Mufflers Replaced With Glasspacks Because The Owner Thinks ‘Titanium’ Is That Thing Where You Have A Ringing In Your Ears.” The C5 Z06 was powerful, always entertaining, and just a little bit cheesy: the Hulk Hogan of cars. READ MORE ››

Monday, August 31, 2015

Fiat-Chrysler Recalling 158,671 Jeep Cherokees for Potential Wiper Fault

2014 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk

Fiat-Chrysler’s recall woes for the latest Jeep Cherokee just keep coming. The latest in a line of recalls for the crossover addresses static electricity buildup on the windshield wipers when they’re operated in dry conditions. An internal FCA investigation revealed the issue, which affects 158,671 2014 Cherokees in the U.S., as well as 47,997 abroad.

The static electricity buildup can affect the control module for the windshield wipers, potentially rendering the wipers inoperative. Jeep says that the fix calls for dealers to install a ground strap to the modules to “eliminate the potential for static buildup.” Customers will be instructed to visit their dealers for ground-strap installation, which will be performed at no cost.

Recall Alert: 2014 Jeep Cherokee

Vehicles Affected: Approximately 160,000 model-year 2014 Jeep Cherokee SUVs

The Problem: Static buildup in the control module could potentially disable the windshield wipers. An investigation by the automaker discovered the problem could occur if the wipers are activated during dry conditions. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said it is unaware of any related injuries or accidents.

The Fix: Dealers will install a ground strap to the control module to eliminate the potential for static buildup for free.

What Owners Should Do: FCA did not immediately announce an owner-notification schedule. Owners can call the automaker at 800-853-1403 for more info.

Need to Find a Dealer for Service? Go to Cars.com Service & Repair to find your local dealer.

More Recalls

New Jersey's New Car Seat Law Gets Child Safety Right

On Sept. 1, a new law goes into effect in New Jersey that will have parents reevaluating how their kids ride in their car seats. Parents of infants and toddlers in New Jersey could be turning their forward-facing child-safety seats back to the rear-facing position to comply with the state's new car-seat law. New Jersey is the first state to enact such a law; a similar law takes effect in Oklahoma on Nov. 1.

Related: Car Seat Checks

This new law follows the American Academy of Pediatrics' guidelines, which were first created in 2011 and adopted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The AAP and NHTSA recommend that children remain in rear-facing car seats until at least age 2 or until they reach the car seat's height or weight limit.

Under New Jersey's law, children younger than 2 and weighing less than 30 pounds must be in a rear-facing car seat with a five-point harness that's installed in the backseat. There are no exceptions made for little ones with long legs. For parents concerned that their rear-facing children won't have enough room to sit comfortably, their kids can sit with their legs crossed or resting against the back of the vehicle's seat.

Rear-facing car seats offer increased crash protection because the car seat's shell absorbs crash forces and supports the child's head, neck and back in a crash, according to the National Child Passenger Safety Certification training manual.

According to New Jersey's new law, once a child has reached either the rear-facing car seat's height or weight limit or is older than 2 or weighs more than 30 pounds, they can ride in a forward-facing car seat with a five-point harness until they're age 4 or 40 pounds.

The new law applies to booster seats as well. It states that a child must ride in a booster until age 8 or 57 inches tall. Seat belts are designed for adults, not kids, and a booster seat raises a child so the seat belt fits them correctly at their hips and shoulders. Under New Jersey's new law, at 57 inches tall a child can then sit in the car's backseat and use a seat belt.

New Jersey's new law addresses two of the common car seat mistakes that many parents across the country make: moving children from rear-facing to forward-facing car seats too soon and not using booster seats for a long enough period.

There are a few other common mistakes that parents of kids in car seats should avoid:

Car-seat installation is too loose: Whether in the rear- or forward-facing position, a car seat installed with a seat belt or the Latch system should move no more than an inch from side to side. Make sure to test your child's car seat every time you use it by giving it a tug at the belt path and looking for too much lateral movement.
Tether strap is overlooked: When a convertible seat is switched to the forward-facing position, it's important for parents to realize there's an additional strap they need to secure on the car seat. At the top of the forward-facing car seat's back is a long strap with a hook on it. This is the tether strap and it connects to a tether anchor in your vehicle, which can be easy to overlook. In sedans, the anchor is on the rear shelf; in SUVs, wagons and hatchbacks, it's on the seatbacks or in the cargo-area. Sometimes it's in the cargo area's ceiling.
Keep kids out of the front seat: Many parents let their kids who have graduated from their booster seats sit in the front passenger seat, but children should ride in the backseat until age 13. In a crash, the front airbag could harm a child more than it would an adult. If you need to put your child in the front seat, make sure to move the front passenger seat as far away from the front airbag as possible.