Latest News From Bumper to Bumper Radio

With the average price of gas dipping below two dollars per gallon for the first time since 2009, many motorists have been seeing a real savings at the pump. Putting some of that savings toward basic auto care can lead to more miles per gallon and, in turn, more savings, says the non-profit Car Care Council.

(Washington, February 8, 2016) - Domestic crude oil inventories reached their highest level for this time of year in nearly eight decades, and barring any major disruptions in supply, gas prices are likely to remain near their lowest price point since the Great Recession in the near term. Today’s average price of $1.74 per gallon reflects a savings of $1.07 per gallon versus the 2015 peak price reached this past June, and gas prices have fallen for 31 of the past 33 days. Pump prices are down six cents per gallon on the week, 24 cents per gallon on the month, and consumers are saving 44 cents per gallon versus this same date last year.

Year-Over-Year Increases Continue; Minivan, SUV Owners at Highest Risk

CENTREVILLE, Va., Feb. 10, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 47 million vehicles that people are driving, buying or selling in the U.S. have at least one unfixed safety recall, according to Carfax. The company's annual research on the issue suggests a net increase of more than one million vehicles from last year. In addition, every state now has at least 100,000 vehicles with an open recall.
 
If you own an SUV or minivan, or live in Texas, Mississippi, Alaska, Utah or West Virginia, then you're most likely to have an unfixed recall. Especially if you fall into one of these two groups, using resources like myCarfax helps you take the all-important next step of bringing your vehicle to a local dealer. While finding opportunities to get a recall fixed can be challenging, a safe family vehicle is paramount.

Lauren Fix, The Car Coach and Paul Brian report on the best of the 2016 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, including their favorite vehicles and the winners of the 2016 North American Car and Truck of the Year. Learn more about the new Honda Civic, Volvo XC-90, Infiniti Q60, Porsche 911, 2017 Dodge Pacifica, 2017 Hyundai Genesis G90, and many more!

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today announced its latest estimate of traffic deaths, which show a steep 9.3 percent increase for the first nine months of 2015. The news comes as the agency kicks-off its first in a series of regional summits with a day-long event in Sacramento, Calif., to examine unsafe behaviors and human choices that contribute to increasing traffic deaths on a national scale. Human factors contribute to 94 percent of crashes according to decades of NHTSA research.

“For decades, U.S. DOT has been driving safety improvements on our roads, and those efforts have resulted in a steady decline in highway deaths,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “But the apparent increase in 2015 is a signal that we need to do more. The safety summits that NHTSA is kicking off today in Sacramento will provide us with new approaches to add to the tried-and-true tactics that we know save lives.”

NHTSA estimates that more than 26,000 people died in traffic crashes in the first nine months of 2015, compared to the 23,796 fatalities in the first nine months of 2014. U.S. regions nationwide showed increases ranging from 2 to 20 percent. View the report

Bumper Audio Clip of the Week

Bumper to Bumper helps a listener who is having an intermittent electrical issue with her vehicle.