Alastair Sloane: Recall system has its own flaws

Photo / Paul Estcourt

Car owners need to be better informed about defects, US Government regulators say.

A study found that only 70 per cent of recall repairs on cars and trucks in the US were done inside 18 months.

The US Government Accountability Office said watchdog groups like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration should change what motorists must be told in recall notification letters.

Last year, carmakers recalled a record 14.9 million vehicles.

"Many recalled vehicles are never fixed, posing a risk to vehicle operators, other drivers, and pedestrians," the GAO said.

Ford switches on

Ford plans to triple its North American production of electric vehicles and hybrids to more than 100,000 by 2013 as it works to make a quarter of its vehicles run at least partly on electricity.

Ford's marketing chief, Jim Farley, said: "We're not electrifying a certain vehicle and making a science project - we're electrifying our core models."

Chief executive officer Alan Mulally has revived Ford in part by focusing on fuel efficiency and broadening the lineup with small cars like the Focus and Fiesta.

Ford now sells about 35,000 hybrids a year,

Farley said. "We're seeing a huge, growing appetite for fuel-efficient, green vehicles."

Drivers black on carbon

A survey in New South Wales reveals that only two out of 10 motorists in the state would support a carbon tax.

And almost seven out of 10 say they would not support a political party that proposed the tax on fuel.

The study, by the NRMA motoring body, comes as the Australian federal government looks at a national carbon dioxide target for new vehicles, as well as revised fuel standards and introduction of excise on LPG and other alternative fuels, all of which will increase the price of motoring.

The federal Labor government plans to put a price on carbon from July next year, and establish an emissions trading scheme within five years.