Driverside: A Comprehensive Car Site

Head out across the Internet, and you'll practically begin tripping over automotive and car-related websites -- websites from car magazine automakers' sites, blogs and many more.

That also means the car website segment is pretty much fragmented, which is where DriverSide comes in.

With its DriverSide Spotlight magazine-like content, reviews and many more tools and features all under one virtual roof, DriverSide seeks to be a one-stop shop for car consumers. No more searching and hunting for a site to find different components and offerings.

DriverSide is currently in Beta, and although it sports many of the features -- photos, reviews, forums, etc., -- that you might expect from an auto website, DriverSide offers compelling tools -- like you can get started on the site by entering your car's VIN number and seeing where that will take you.

This was a sponsored post.

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Seat Belt Intervention Shows Many Lives Can Be Saved on China's Roads

China accounts for around 15% of the world’s total number of deaths from traffic accidents each year. Motor vehicle production has tripled since the 1990s and despite the availability of seat belts in almost all passenger cars in China and laws requiring restraint use, the habitual use of seat belts is low. With the human toll alone from road traffic injuries in China around 100,000 deaths per year, there is an urgency to implement such interventions in the major cities.

Lead investigator at The George Institute for International Health, Mark Stevenson says, “Research indicates that the risk of death is reduced by up to 60% in drivers using seat belts compared with those not using a seat belt. Prior to the intervention, around half of all drivers/passengers in Guangzhou used seat belts. Our study shows that, since implementation of the intervention, 62% of drivers and passengers in Guangzhou are wearing a seat belt (with an even greater improvement among taxi drivers - more than 20% increase in seat belt use). This translates into the equivalent of 530 Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) saved as a result of the intervention.”

The seat belt intervention utilised a novel blend of scientific expertise with practical approaches including enhanced law-enforcement practices, extensive social marketing and health education.

According to Wu Guanghui of Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Public Security, “Activities to increase seat belt use, awareness and compliance have been implemented with great success. We accomplished significant improvements in Guangzhou city with seat belt law enforcement training for traffic officers in conjunction with the intensive enforcement program. The results have shown that enhanced police enforcement and road safety communication strategies contributed to raising the prevalence of seat belt use in the city and reducing road traffic injuries."

World Health Organization (WHO) Representative in China, Dr Henk Bekedam notes that the results of the intervention set a good example for other cities in China. "Interventions such as this can save lives. Preventing road injury requires a sustained cross-sectoral effort and the China Seatbelt Intervention has been successful in bringing together a range of important Government, community and private sector partners committed to reducing death and injury on China's roads. WHO is proud to have been part of this effort. The next challenge is replicating these great results around China."
Zhang Li from the China Ministry of Health says, “Raising the use of seat belts will significantly reduce road traffic deaths and injuries. We are extremely pleased with the outcome of this project which involved strong collaborations of government, scientists, and industry.”

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Consumer Reports Identifies Most, Least Problematic Used Vehicles

New-car reliabilityis one thing, but how well will your car hold up three, five, even 10 years from now? On average, Toyota and Honda vehicles age best while those made by Volkswagen fare worst, according to new survey information from Consumer Reports.

For the first time, Consumer Reports has reported on the reliability of vehicles built in the past 10 model years (1997-2006). In addition, Consumer Reports has also identified vehicles that are most prone to specific problems to give used-car buyers more information than ever when making a purchase decision, the magazine says.

Detailed reliability ratings of 248 makes and models can be found in the April issue of Consumer Reports magazine, available March 6, or by logging in at http://www.ConsumerReports.org.

Among 10-year-old vehicles, owners of Japanese cars report the fewestproblems overall, the magazine says.

Toyota, Honda, and Subaru lead the way with an average of 65, 89, and 90 problems per 100 vehicles reported, respectively. Theaverage of all 10-year-old vehicles is 132 problems per 100 vehicles.

Of the domestic 10-year-old vehicles, those from Ford (including Lincoln and Mercury) remain most reliable, at about 120 problems per 100 vehicles. Ten-year-old vehicles from GM and Chrysler are nearly neck-and-neck with about 160 problems per 100 vehicles. Volkswagen (including Audi) owners reported about 175 problems per 100 vehicles, by far worse than anyother brand, the magazine says.

The oldest Korean vehicles (eight years old) from Hyundai (including Kia) that Consumers Reports says it has sufficient reliability data for are problematic, faring worse than all domestics and half of some European brands. Newer models, however, show improvements, the magazine adds.

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Better Late Than Never When it Comes to Winterizing Your Car

It's time to fess up. You didn't winterize your car and it really could have used some attention, especially with below freezing temperatures striking many parts of the United States. Now what? The good news is that you're not alone and it's not too late.

The Car Care Council reports that 70 percent of motorists don't winterize their vehicles in preparation for winter. There's still time though to have the battery, antifreeze, wipers and wiper fluid checked to help avoid "no starts" and breakdowns and ensure safety and visibility during harsh winter driving conditions, the organization says.

Very cold temperatures will reduce a vehicle's battery power so it's important to keep the connections clean, tight and corrosion-free. Unfortunately, batteries don't always give warning signs before they fail completely. If your vehicle's battery is three years old or more, it's wise to replace it. When choosing a replacement, make sure the new one has adequate capacity for your exact make and model.

For antifreeze, the owner's manual will have usage specifications but the mixture of antifreeze (coolant) and water inside your vehicle's radiator is typically 50:50. When properly mixed, antifreeze and water provide excellent anti-freeze, anti-boil and anticorrosive properties. As a reminder, don't make the mistake of adding 100 percent antifreeze as full-strength antifreeze actually has a lower freeze point than when mixed with water, the council says.

Cold weather can affect the life of windshield wipers. Freezing temperatures can make the rubber hard and brittle and increase the potential for cracks. Wiper blades that are cracked or torn, or that chatter, streak and don't properly clean your windshield should be changed. Some manufacturers offer special winter blades that have a rubber boot covering the arm assembly to keep snow and ice out. When changing the blades, have the windshield wiper system nozzles cleaned and adjusted ifnecessary, and check the windshield washer reservoir in case it needs fluid.

The council recommends changing to low-viscosity oil in winter, as itwill flow more easily between moving parts when cold. Drivers in sub-zero driving temperatures should drop their oil weight from 10-W30 to 5-W30 as thickened oil can make it hard to start the car. It's also good to allow your car a little more time to warm up when temperatures are below freezing to let the oil in the engine and transmission circulate and get warm.

Tire pressure should also be checked as tires will lose pressure when temperatures drop. Lastly, don't forget your winter emergency kit that should include an ice scraper, flashlight, blankets, extra clothes, candle/matches, bottled water, snacks, gloves, flares, a first aid kit and needed medication.

"Below freezing temperatures can stress out a vehicle, as well as itsdriver," says Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. "Motorists who invest an hour or so to have their vehicles checked will have peace-of-mind and one less thing to worry about as the harsh winter conditions continue throughout much of the country."

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Volkswagen Shows Off Advanced Fuels Vehicles

Volkswagen of America is showing off advanced fuels models of some VW cars at the Designing Sustainable Mobility Summit, being held at Art Center College of Design in Southern California.

Summit attendees and Art Center students are being provided the experience of driving VW models running on biodiesel, ultra low sulfur diesel, hydrogen, and highly efficient gasoline engines on public roads.

"It's important to demonstrate that raising the bar in such important areas as fuel efficiency and emissions reduction isn't just accomplished with exotic or future-oriented technologies," says Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal, which is hosting the summit's ride-and-drive. "Volkswagen's demonstration of its clean diesel and twincharger engines provides real-world examples of environmentally positive technologies that are operating on highways today."

At the event's Green Cars/Pasadena ride-and-drive, VW is fielding a Touareg V-10 TDI running on B5 biodiesel, a mixture of conventional ultralow sulfur diesel (ULSD) fuel and renewable biodiesel. Diesel fuel that includes a mix of biodiesel burns cleaner and also helps displace fossil fuel use, contributing to energy diversity. VW has extended warranty protection to its models operating on B5 biodiesel as a way to encourage use of this cleaner fuel.

An advance look is also being offered of a highly efficient, twincharger gasoline engine Jetta in development. This Jetta's TSI engine provides higher power output from a smaller displacement engine while also achieving greater fuel efficiency and lower emissions. The TSI is popular in Europe and now is being considered for use in the U.S. It uses asupercharger to provide engine boost at lower rpms and an exhaust-driven turbocharger at mid-range rpms and higher.

At the summit, VW's Touran HyMotion hydrogen fuel cell vehicle not only shows Volkswagen's interest in this zero-emission fuel, but also showcases the company's breakthrough high-temperature fuel cell.

A decade of VW hydrogen vehicle development has led to a high-temperature fuel cell that provides a more compact, lighter, and more durable fuel cell system. This technology holds great promise to make fuel cell powertrains more economical, key to future mass production, the automaker says.


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Alabama Woman Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Prison for Katrina Fraud

Lawanda T. Williams, also known as Lawanda Johnson, was sentenced to more than six years in prison for defrauding the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of more than $267,000 and for aggravated identity theft following Hurricane Katrina, U.S. Attorney Deborah Rhodes of the Southern District of Alabama announced.

Williams was sentenced to 75 months in prison, and was ordered to pay full restitution to FEMA in the amount of $267,377. In addition, Williams was ordered to forfeit all of the property she purchased with the proceeds of her Katrina fraud, including four automobiles, real estate, televisions and other electronics.

Williams pled guilty in September 2006 to making false claims to the government, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft in connection with 28 fraudulent claims for disaster assistance she made to FEMA after Hurricane Katrina. Williams admitted that her residence in Jackson, Ala. was not damaged by the hurricane and that she filed 28 fraudulent claims for Katrina assistance, falsely claiming to have lived at various addresses in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida. In those applications, Williams admitted using Social Security numbers of other people and providing FEMA with fraudulent and fictitious documents that purported to prove her ownership of property she did not own.

"Ms. Williams used Hurricane Katrina and the relief efforts as an opportunity to make hundreds of thousands of dollars by lying and by stealing other people's identities," says Rhodes. "The Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force is actively working to bring to justice those who took advantage of the recovery efforts to enrich themselves."

Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States. It made landfall along the Gulf Coast in late August 2005, laying waste to New Orleans and the surrounding region. The government response, particularly from FEMA, was widely criticized.

In September 2005, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales created the national Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force, designed to deter, investigate and prosecute disaster-related federal crimes such as charity fraud, identity theft, procurement fraud and insurance fraud. The Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force, chaired by Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, Alice Fisher, includes members from the FBI, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, the Postal Inspector's Office and the Executive Office of United States Attorneys, among others.

The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General, the FBI, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Costello.


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