Automotive Safety

Used Car Sales

   Previously owned vehicles may have undisclosed mechanical issues that may end up posing a risk to public safety (e.g., rusty undercarriage, faulty brakes, drivetrain issues, etc.). This may be prevented if there was a mandatory certification process where all used vehicles are required to disclose any safety issues prior to the sale of the vehicle (as a color-coded certification report).

   Similar to a window sticker for new vehicles, used vehicles should likewise be required to display a notification report that was performed by a licensed mechanic prior to the sale of the vehicle. The report will be required to be filed with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles in order for the title to be transferred to the new owner.

Senior Citizens

   In order to reduce the number of accidents involving senior citizens, all elderly drivers (age 60+) should be required to operate vehicles with an emergency braking system that automatically applies the brakes to prevent collisions.

Driving While Impaired

   Impaired driving offenders should be required to have alcohol ignition interlock devices installed in their vehicles. These are portable breathalyzers that prevent the vehicle from starting if the driver's blood alcohol level exceeds a safe limit. Some countries may require this restriction, while others don't, and some only require it for repeat offenders. This inconsistency causes a public safety matter that should be corrected for every nation.

Engine Safety (New Engine)

   Auto manufacturers should be required to treat new engines with an engine block sealer to repair microscopic cracks and defects that may occur during the manufacturing process. This may reduce the chances of engine failure that poses a risk to the consumer.

Engine Safety (Fuel Treatment)

   Oil companies should be required to add fuel stabilizers that extend the life of their gasoline to a year or longer before it may degrade. The reason for this is that the fuel from some gas stations, depending on their location and how often they refill their reservoirs, may already be decomposing by the time that it is purchased by consumers. In such circumstances, customers are essentially buying a defective product.

   Combining stale fuel from a gas station with the partially decomposed gasoline already in a vehicle's tank can cause gum deposits and varnish in the fuel line (which is a safety concern). To prevent this and to protect the consumer from purchasing a defective product, oil companies should be required to add fuel stabilizers that extend the life of their product to a year or longer at no cost to the consumer.

Vehicle Emissions Inspections

   Vehicle inspections for emissions testing are required to reduce pollution, however, some of the tests involved require operating the vehicle at highway speeds. Not everyone may be comfortable with this requirement especially the elderly or disabled who may endanger their lives and other motorists if they were forced to drive on the highway. This requirement should be removed from emissions testing.