Auto Safety

Three top automakers are recalling vehicles for items ranging from steering problems to stalling engines to faulty tire-pressure monitoring systems. The largest involves 35,000 Honda Civic hybrid models to fix electrical components that could cause headlights to shut off or the engine to stall.

Automakers recalled more vehicles last year than in any of the last six years. And while Toyota Motors accounted for much of the growth, with problems including unintended acceleration and glitchy brakes, many other car manufacturers also saw their recalls increase.

Honda Motor Co. (HMC) is recalling 1.35 million Fit subcompact cars to repair defective wiring in the headlights. The carmaker said it would recall 143,000 cars in the United States and 734,000 cars in Japan, according to The Associated Press. The recall in Japan will cost the company about 3.6...

Toyota Motor is once again defending itself against claims that it sought to cover up vehicle defects after it reportedly bought back cars that accelerated unintentionally but failed to disclose the problem to federal safety officials.

Toyota Motor is issuing another recall -- this time it involves 740,000 cars and sports-utility vehicles in the U.S. and nearly 600,000 units in Japan to repair a seal on the vehicles' brake master cylinder that may leak fluid and impair braking performance.

Daimler AG (DDAIF) is recalling about 85,000 Mercedes-Benz cars in the U.S. to adjust their power-steering systems. The adjustment is aimed to prevent the loss of power steering fluid, The Wall Street Journal said, citing a statement on the website of U.S. traffic authority NHTSA. Sponsored...

Chung Sung-eun, vice chairman and chief executive of South Korea's Kia Motors, has resigned following the recall of some 100,000 cars worldwide for a wiring defect.

A federal safety review has been launched targeting some 3 million older model Jeep Grand Cherokees on concerns that their fuel tanks may catch fire in a crash. A report likens the problem to the Ford Pinto's. NHTSA said the investigation covers 1993-2004 model-year vehicles and does not constitute a recall. The agency's investigation could eventually lead to a recall, or it may find that there are no problems.

DailyFinance's Peter Cohan has found that certain models of BMW's 335 and 535 might have faulty fuel pumps that can result in diminished engine power or a complete stall. No recalls are in effect. And so far, no one has been seriously hurt. What happens if that changes?

It's official. The crash dummies are joining the slippers from the Wizard of Oz in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History's collection. The Department of Transportation and the Smithsonian announced the donation today saying that the dummies, Vince and Larry, who started "life" as...