In 2009, the United States decided to enact trade tariffs on tires coming from China with the hopes of encouraging manufacturers and creating jobs in the United States. While the tariffs did reduce the amount of tires coming from China, it has done little to help US manufacturers or create jobs. Instead, the supply source has shifted to other markets like Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and Indonesia. During this time, the price of tires has jumped over ten percent in the United States.

The United States automobile industry is expected to hire thousands of new employees in 2012 as auto sales continue to recover from the recession. Some analysts believe that unstable currencies in Europe and China will add to the boom as foreign auto companies find it more economical to manufacture where they sell. It is expected that a total of 650,000 employees could be added to the work force this year. Unemployment is still a major problem across the U.S., but a rebounding auto industry will be a key player in getting people back to work over the next few years. Almost 13 million vehicles were sold last year and automakers are hoping 2012 sales to reach over 14 million.

Starting January 1st, police at California DUI checkpoints, will no longer be able to tow away vehicles because the drivers' only offense is not having a license. According to author of the legislation, Assemblyman Gil Cedillo, “The problem is diverting too many resources that are supposed to be focused on drunk drivers.” The new law will no longer allow an officer to tow someone's vehicle for a lack of a driver's license as long as the offender can find someone who can drive the vehicle back home for them. Supporters of the new law say that these impounds unfairly targeted minorities and undocumented workers, while opposition to the law point out that almost twenty percent of fatal car crashes are caused by unlicensed drivers.

At one time, if you wanted safety systems such as anti lock brakes and electronic stability control, you had to buy a premium automobile like Audi, Lexus, or Mercedes. Today, these systems are standard on almost all vehicles. As premium car manufacturers add even more advanced safety systems to their vehicles, they become more affordable and make their way down to mainstream brands. An example of this is Ford offering a lane departure warning system on its mainstream redesigned 2013 Ford Fusion and its 2013 Ford Explorer SUV. The system will alert the driver through steering wheel vibrations and messages on the control display, and will become more insistent if the driver does not make the proper corrections. Ford will be offering the system as an option, but it is expected to become a part of a trim line package on its upper-tier SE or Titanium lines.

A civil action, filed in a District of Columbia court room, has the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) being sued over the release of Toyota Unintended Acceleration investigation documents. The lawsuit was filed by Safety Research & Strategies (SRS), a Massachusetts safety research firm that advocates for consumers on safety matters. The firm says that the NHTSA violated the freedom of information act by withholding records involving certain unintended acceleration incidents.

For the last ten years, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has tried to limit cell phone and personal electronic device (PED) use while driving. In the past, they have recommended bans on texting and cell phone use by bus drivers, commercial truck drivers and beginner drivers, but the lack of enforcement still results in over 3,000 deaths related to distracted driving. While most drivers know distractions behind the wheel are dangerous, many feel they are too busy to pull over to take a call or answer a text.

After selling off it's foreign luxury brands, Ford has had little to offer consumers looking for a luxury car. Their Lincoln brand, popularly used for limousines in the '90's, was once considered the staple of luxury, but has lost its edge to carmakers with sleeker designs and high tech features. Ford hopes to change this by giving their Lincoln line a complete face lift with the help of design mastermind, Max Wolff. Wolff, hired from Cadillac last year, has been given complete control to totally revamp the Lincoln models. A rare opportunity that has taken Lincoln in a completely different direction.

A proposal by California state regulators will have 15% of new vehicles sold in 2025 to be zero emissions or low emissions. The new rules would force automakers to increase the number of electric and hybrid vehicles starting in 2018. Similar regulations have been proposed in the past, but were rejected because electric vehicle technology was not ready for the consumer market. Now with electric vehicles becoming common with many automobile manufacturers, regulators feel their proposal is achievable and should be looked at again.

Automobile manufacturers have, over the years, focused on offering customers the most advanced crash protection. The technology has become so affordable, that safety features have become standardized across all manufacturers. At his year's Los Angeles Auto Show, auto makers are hoping to win customers by, not only offering safety features that protect occupants, but by offering technology that will avoid accidents completely. Some of today's vehicles already have systems that monitor the situation outside the vehicle and alert the driver to a possible problem, but these systems rely on the driver reacting quickly and correctly. Automobile manufacturers are hoping to take this technology one step further by allowing the vehicle to react if the driver fails to do so. Some of the crash avoidance technology being debuted at this years LA auto show include:

Not many new car buyers look forward to the car shopping experience. The internet has made it easier for consumers to research vehicles, but eventually you will have to face the dealership sales staff. Or do you? A new trend in auto shopping is seeing more and more people buying online without even taking the vehicle for a test drive. According to LeaseTrader.com, the first company to provide consumers Authorized Lease Transfers, the amount of people leasing vehicles online without a test drive has more than doubled since 2007.