Millions of new cars have been recalled for safety reasons worldwide in the past few years, on near-new and older models. Why are cars recalled? If a particular model has a manufacturing defect that may cause a safety issue, it will be recalled. Some problems can be covered off by carmakers issuing service bulletins, so dealers can carry out remedial work when a car is in … [Read more...] about Safety recalls: opening the right doors
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Carmakers sticking to special glues
Carmakers using aluminium and composites to make vehicles lighter and therefore more fuel efficient are turning to special glues to bond the high-tech components. Materials like aluminum and carbon fibre cannot be welded together and have to be glued with adhesives that will not lose their strength. That puts industrial adhesives – made up of chemicals such as the polyolefins … [Read more...] about Carmakers sticking to special glues
Brute force stretches Jeep limit
A story I wrote a few years ago about an after-market Jeep pick-up gaining sales ground in the United States prompted many phone calls about such a vehicle’s availability in New Zealand. The pick-up conversion kit wasn’t available through official Jeep channels here and I steered the many inquiries to a couple of addresses in the US. One of them was American Expedition … [Read more...] about Brute force stretches Jeep limit
Lexus trials compact SUV to rival Germans
Japanese luxury marque Lexus has the BMW X1, Audi Q3 and upcoming Mercedes-Benz GLA in its sights with a new crossover likely to be called the NX. The compact SUV has been spied testing at the Nurburgring circuit in Germany. If there is something familiar about it that’s because the test mule is fitted with the body of the Lexus CT 200h hatchback wrapped in stick-on vinyl … [Read more...] about Lexus trials compact SUV to rival Germans
Top 10 – most influential 20th Century cars
1 - 1910 Ford Model T The 1910 ‘Tin Lizzy’s’ status as such is undeniable; it was voted the Car of the (20th) Century by an international panel of motoring journalists; it introduced drivers to the world’s first (crude) automatic gearbox; and it made Henry Ford a household name. Most of all, the T-bucket was cheap, and bought motorised four-wheeled personal mobility within … [Read more...] about Top 10 – most influential 20th Century cars