Complaint resolution service publishes case studies, recall information and consumer news.

I jumped on the DriverSide bandwagon early in their beta period and was patient while the company sorted out the normal bugs that exist when any company tests their site before officially going live.

Driverside.com offers service schedules for all your cars, recall alerts, message boards and now a free Ask A Mechanic feature.

Looking around the site on our knockabout Ford Fusion, I was thrilled ot see the new feature that lets anyone who registers for free ask an impartial mechanic about a car problem.

Cars, like houses, are one of the those things most consumers seem to wish they knew more about because they’re so integral to our lives yet have strange rules.  A free service that answers questions from anyone can only help consumers since the mechanics involved (who have bios on the site) aren’t getting a commssion from your local garage.

Even in beta, this site is worth registering for now.

Posted under Automotive

Manufacturers will display the government’s star safety ratings on every new vehicle with a price sticker, according to a federal rule made final September 7 in Washington, DC. The rule announced by National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator Nicole Nason and Ohio Senator Mike DeWine, provides for an expanded window sticker meant to provide consumers with safety rating information about new vehicles.

The rule requires that NHTSA’s star safety rating information be displayed on part of the window sticker on new cars beginning with the 2008 model year. Consumers will be able to measure the safety information by the number of stars on the sticker.

The new vehicle price stickers will contain NHTSA safety ratings in three areas – front and side crash and non-destructive rollover tests. All three tests use the five-star rating, with five stars being the safest.

“Senator DeWine, a strong advocate for highway safety, has done a great service for consumers by demanding that vehicle safety information be included on the sticker as well,” said Nason. “By making safety a selling point, it is my hope that this rule will encourage the faster development of these kinds of technologies.”

Senator DeWine was the sponsor of the legislation creating the “Stars on Cars” program, which was included in the 2005 highway bill. “This measure just makes sense. By placing safety ratings directly on new car window stickers, consumers will have the ability to make more informed decisions right there on the car sales lot,” said Senator DeWine.

Posted under Automotive