Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a petition for review challenging the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) corporate average fuel economy standards (CAFE) for certain cars and light trucks. The regulation seeks to increase the number of electric vehicles on roads nationwide. Ten other states have joined the petition. This challenge opposes the Biden […]
NTSB Says Automobile Safety Rating System Is Failing Consumers
Safety board says 5-Star program should include collision avoidance technology ratings. The 5-Star Safety Rating Program that Americans use when shopping for new passenger vehicles “fails consumers” by not including collision-avoidance and other technology in the ratings and is approaching “near irrelevance,” said National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy in a comment letter […]
Traffic Fatalities Estimated to Reach 16-Year High in 2021
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released its early estimate of traffic fatalities for 2021. NHTSA projects that an estimated 42,915 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes last year, a 10.5% increase from the 38,824 fatalities in 2020. The projection is the highest number of fatalities since 2005 and the largest annual percentage increase […]
Mercedes-Benz USA Announces Voluntary Do Not Drive Recall for Select 2006-2012 ML, GL and R-Class Vehicles
Loss of brake assist could increase risk of crash. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that Mercedes-Benz USA will conduct a voluntary recall of approximately 292,287 ML-, GL- and R-Class vehicles produced during the 2006-2012 model year period for potentially corroded brake boosters. The corrosion could severely affect braking capability, increasing the […]
US Department of Transportation Sets 49 MPG Fuel Economy Standard for 2026 MY Vehicles
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced new, Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards that require an industry-wide fleet average of approximately 49 mpg for passenger cars and light trucks in model year 2026, the highest fuel efficiency standards to date. The new standards will increase fuel efficiency 8% annually for model […]
IIHS and HLDI Call on Regulators to Require Pedestrian AEB that Works in the Dark
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) this month petitioned federal regulators to require manufacturers to equip all new passenger vehicles with automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems capable of detecting and avoiding pedestrians in the dark as well as in daylight. Both a HLDI analysis of insurance claims […]
NHTSA Launches Paid Media Campaign Educates Vehicle Owners About ADAS Technologies
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is launching a new yearlong $1.25 million digital paid media campaign to help drivers learn about the safety benefits of advanced driver-assistance technologies in newer vehicles. The agency’s research shows that many drivers are unaware of the benefits of the technologies and even how they work. The campaign will […]
NHTSA Recall Website Now Highlights Do Not Drive and Fire Risk Recalls
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is providing a new tool to help quickly identify if a vehicle has an urgent safety recall where the vehicle should not be driven or parked inside until fixed. When a vehicle VIN search is conducted at NHTSA.gov/Recalls, a red box will display at the top of the page […]
NHTSA Proposes Updates to Five-Star Safety Ratings Program
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed significant safety updates to its flagship 5-Star Safety Ratings program. These improvements are part of efforts to improve safety on our nation’s roads and will help fulfill requirements included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. NHTSA is proposing the following updates to its 5-Star […]
NHTSA to Allow Adaptive Driving Beam Headlights on New Vehicles
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a final rule allowing automakers to install adaptive driving beam headlights on new vehicles. This satisfies a requirement in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law more than a year and a half ahead of schedule. Adaptive driving beam headlight systems, or ADB, use automatic headlight beam […]