Automotive News: GM's Lost Appeal, Tesla AP Update Challenges, Critics Fear Trump Will Tap Auto Exec for NHTSA
Lost appeal could cost GM billions
General Motors Co. could be exposed to billions of dollars in additional claims related to its defective ignition switches after the U.S. Supreme Court turned away an appeal from the company seeking to block hundreds of lawsuits from proceeding.
The justices on Monday left in place a lower court ruling that said the automaker’s 2009 bankruptcy did not shield it from liability in cases involving death and injuries, or for economic loss because the value of the cars plunged. The court did not comment on its reasoning for rejecting to hear the case. read more »
Tesla Autopilot, Updates Leave Driving a Challenge
John Kelner placed an online order at the Tesla showroom and paid a $2,500 deposit Dec. 10, 2016. Four days later, he made his first lease payment of $24,333. The $108,770 purchase price included a $5,000 premium for enhanced autopilot software, which the carmaker promised on its website and in marketing materials would be available that month.
But a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday in San Jose, California, claims the Tesla he received six days into his car-buying experience lacks a functional autopilot, and the AP2.0 autopilot system is still not working to this day. In addition, a front-collision warning is the only standard safety feature enabled "from the promised suite."
Kelner is one of three plaintiffs from different states who filed what promises to be a national class action alleging the automaker sold nearly 50,000 cars with defective autopilot software and knowingly put drivers in harm's way. read more »
Critics fear Trump will tap auto exec for NHTSA
Car-safety advocates are worried that President Donald Trump might turn over the keys to the agency charged with regulating the safety of the nation’s automobiles to someone from within the industry’s ranks.
Rosemary Shahan, president of the Sacramento, Calif.-based Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety group, said she would not be surprised if Trump reaches out to an auto executive to fill the position of National Highway Traffic Safety administrator, vacant since Trump took office in January.
“He has a penchant of appointing people who have been regulated and allowing them to dismantle agencies,” Shahan continued. “You have all these companies who have been under investigations for safety violations recently. I wouldn’t be surprised if he appointed somebody from one of them. It would be consistent with his other appointments.” read more »
