Latest News From Bumper Radio

More than 103 million Americans will travel this holiday season

ORLANDO, Fla. – More than 103 million Americans—the most on record—are expected to travel for the year-end holidays, according to AAA. This represents a 1.5 percent increase, or 1.5 million more people traveling, compared with last year. This comes despite one fewer travel day this holiday season. The year-end holiday travel period is defined as Friday, December 23 to Monday, January 2, 2017.

The increase in holiday travel this year is being driven by additional consumer spending, a result of improvements in the labor market and rising wages. Additionally, low gas prices and increased consumer optimism will prompt more Americans than ever to set out on road trips, take to the skies, or board trains, buses and cruise ships to celebrate the holidays.
“’Tis the season for holiday travel, and this year more Americans will travel to celebrate the holidays and ring in the New Year than ever before,” said AAA President and CEO Marshall Doney. “Rising incomes and continued low gas prices should make for a joyous holiday travel season.”

Proposed rule would mandate vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication on light vehicles, allowing cars to 'talk' to each other to avoid crashes

Citing an enormous potential to reduce crashes on U.S. roadways, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a proposed rule today that would advance the deployment of connected vehicle technologies throughout the U.S. light vehicle fleet. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking would enable vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology on all new light-duty vehicles, enabling a multitude of new crash-avoidance applications that, once fully deployed, could prevent hundreds of thousands of crashes every year by helping vehicles “talk” to each other.

“We are carrying the ball as far as we can to realize the potential of transportation technology to save lives,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “This long promised V2V rule is the next step in that progression.  Once deployed, V2V will provide 360-degree situational awareness on the road and will help us enhance vehicle safety.”

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is pulling out all of the stops to deter motorists from driving drunk this holiday season. To spread this urgent safety message, NHTSA is kicking-off its annual Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign and is working to end drunk driving on U.S. roads altogether through innovative technology called the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS).

“Each year, too many lives are lost to drunk driving, particularly around the holiday season. Now we have an opportunity to prevent future drunk driving tragedies by taking action today,” said U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.  “We want everyone to be safe this holiday season, which is why we’re urging the public to make the right choice, follow the law and drive sober.”

Should I turn into the skid? How much braking distance do I need in a storm? Ice and snow are hitting the road during the busy holiday season. Racecar driver and automotive expert Lauren Fix, the Car Coach® provides important winter driving and safety tips. Share with friends and loved ones who will be driving during the holidays!

Retail averages have increased 28 of the past 30 days and prices have moved higher by fractions of a penny since Friday. The national average for regular unleaded gasoline currently sits at $2.29 per gallon, which is five cents more than one week ago, 16 cents more than one month ago and 29 cents more year-over-year.

Heading into 2017, gasoline demand is expected to drop drastically during the month of January following the busy holiday travel season. Over the past five years, the average drop during that period has been 358,000 b/d or about 15-million gallons, according to OPIS. The oil information service estimates a larger dip this year.

Listen to Dave Riccio of Bumper to Bumper Radio & Tri-City Transmission along with a panel of BBB Ethics Award winners share winning strategies in the areas of marketing, technology, human resources, and finance.

BBB Torch Awards for Ethics winners also highlight how ethics impacts their bottom line and company culture.

That very unofficial nine mile-per-hour “tolerance cushion” on Arizona’s interstate highway system is going away by the end of the month on certain freeway segments.

Arizona Department of Transportation, Department of Public Safety and Governor’s Office of Highway Safety are designating 63 miles of Interstates 10 and 40, and U.S. 60 as safety corridors.

These zero-tolerance corridors will see heavy traffic enforcement efforts in an attempt to reduce the number of accidents, motorist injuries and excessive deaths.

The news from ADOT came Dec. 12, the day the first phase of enforcement went into effect for two segments on I-10.

A video shows two cars crashing head-on at 35 miles per hour. (Don't worry, the drivers are crash test dummies.) One car is red, one is silver.

The red car crumples like an accordion. The dummy's face collides with the steering wheel as glass flies everywhere. Then the entire front of the cabin collapses in, pushing the dummy's knees up and crushing them against the dashboard.

The front of the silver car is also crushed. But the frame of the car is relatively intact This dummy flies forward in the seat belt, but front and side airbags soften the blow. The windshield cracks, but doesn't shatter. They're both Nissan cars. The red car is a 2015 Tsuru, manufactured for sale in Mexico. The silver one is a 2016 Versa, made for the U.S. market.
 
In a crash test, Mexico's lowest-priced Nissan (left) collided with America's least expensive Nissan. The dummy's face hit the steering wheel in the Mexican model. Airbags in the American model softened the blow.

When it comes to cars, our main goal here at Good Works Auto Repair is to keep you safe and your car running better and longer. Often times, we teach our customers about auto repairs, preventative maintenance or other services related to your vehicles but today we thought we would look at recalls, and their impact on our vehicle and even more importantly, our safety.

Many drivers ignore recalls, don’t know what to do when they receive a recall notice or become worried or angry and don’t know where to turn. A recent article in Your Mechanic by Jason Unrau explains what a recall is and what you should do if you receive one.