On The Move

Monday, April 4, 2011 For Advertising Information Contact Your Local Cars.Com On-The-Move Sales Team at 599-2378 or 599-2329

Automakers must build support for higher-mileage vehiclesDETROIT — Automak-

ers are spending more than $50 billion to meet the government’s 2016 fuel economy law, but consum-ers aren’t buying enough of the fuel-efficient vehi-cles necessary to allow manufacturers to achieve the required 35.5 miles-per-gallon average.

Despite rising gas prices and new electric cars and hybrids, the fuel economy of Americans’ new vehicles stagnated last year.

The 2010 average of all new vehicles actu-ally slipped to 22.2 mpg from 22.3 mpg, according to a report from Ward’s Automotive Reports that examined calendar-year sales.

With unleaded regular gasoline now averaging $3.56 a gallon nationally — up from a 2010 aver-age of $2.84 — car buyers are thinking more about fuel economy than they were last year. But replac-ing a large vehicle with a smaller one is farther than

many buyers are going.Hybrid car sales actu-

ally shrank from 2.9 per-cent of new vehicle sales in 2009 to 2.4 percent last year. Sales of light trucks — pickups, SUVs, cross-overs and minivans — rose to 51 percent from 48 percent over the same period.

Said Gloria Bergquist, vice president of the Alli-ance of Automobile Man-ufacturers: “For con-sumers to really change their buying habits, they must believe higher gas

prices are a long-term change, and by long-term, they mean five years or more.”

If automakers don’t meet the standard four years from now, they could face fines if the law is not

rewritten.Now 160 models on the

market get 30 or more miles per gallon. Plug-in vehicles such as the Chevrolet Volt and Nis-san Leaf are available, as are 25 gasoline-electric hybrids. Even more are on the way as automak-ers rush to hit the most aggressive fuel-economy requirements since the government began reg-ulating efficiency in the mid-1970s.

By Greg GardnerGANNETT NEWS SERVICE

See MILEAGE, pAGE 4 / CARS

“We studied the 1970s and we looked back at the last couple of oil crises, and we found that the American consumer

will buy small, more fuel-efficient cars for literally three to four months. And then three or four months later, we go right

back to buying big cars.”

Rebecca Lindland IHS Automotive

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Page 2 / Monday, April 4, 2011 Tallahassee Democrat / OnTheMOve

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OnTheMOve / Tallahassee Democrat Monday, April 4, 2011 / Page 3

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Yet, even as unleaded regular approaches $4 a gallon, consumer accep-tance of high-mileage tech-nology has been lukewarm at best.

In the first two months of the year, Chevrolet sold 602 Volts while Nis-san sold 154 Leafs. In the same period, by contrast, Cadillac sold 2,793 Esca-lades and Lincoln sold 1,193 Navigators.

“Consumers are the wild card,” Bergquist said. “Americans have mostly chosen to buy larger vehi-cles. Crossovers accounted for 2.9 million sales last year, compared to 2 mil-

lion for subcompacts and compacts together.”

Still, the new standards have automakers under pressure to make sure each redesigned model is considerably more efficient than the one it replaces.

But if everyone buys a leaner version of the same vehicle being replaced, that won’t be enough for auto-makers to meet the govern-ment’s average fuel econo-my standard of 35.5 mpg by 2016 — unless they’re selling mostly passenger cars and large volumes of hybrids, for which manu-facturers earn CAFE (cor-porate average fuel econo-my) credits.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found that the industrywide

average last year improved slightly to 22.5 from 22.4 mpg based on automakers’ projection of 2010 model-year sales.

“We studied the 1970s and we looked back at the last couple of oil crises, and we found that the Amer-ican consumer will buy small, more fuel-efficient cars for literally three to four months,” said Rebecca Lindland of IHS Automo-tive. “And then three or four months later, we go right back to buying big cars.”

She has concluded: “The change in consumer buy-ing behavior toward better fuel economy is not aggres-sive enough to meet the 35.5 mpg standard.”

Exceptions exist. Sales

of Toyota Prius are up 47 percent this year through the end of February. Volk-swagen is seeing sharp increases in the sale of its Jetta and Golf clean diesel models. But diesels, which account for 48 percent of new-car sales in Europe, make up less than 1 per-cent of all U.S. sales.

“Automakers have to work harder advertising their best mileage models,” said Mark Cooper, director of research at the Consum-er Federation of America. “And they’re going to have to work harder to improve the mileage of vehicles con-sumers want.”

General Motors touts its 12 models that get 30 mpg or better on the high-way. Ford is promoting its

“Four over 40 (mpg)” — Fiesta, Focus and hybrid versions of the Fusion and Lincoln MKZ.

“Our plan is to have the best fuel economy across the entire range of prod-ucts,” Ford spokeswoman Christin Baker said. “To some degree, the buying habits are going to be driv-en by a variety of needs beyond fuel economy.”

Based on EPA data, the adjusted fuel economy per-formance of manufactur-ers selling in the U.S. last year ranged from a high of 25.9 mpg for Hyundai to Chrysler’s 19.2. Credits for flex-fuel, compressed natu-ral gas, hybrids and elec-tric vehicles raise those numbers by at least 25 percent for the sake of

meeting CAFE standards. For 2011, each manufac-turer is required to reach an average of 30.2 mpg for passenger cars and 24.1 for light trucks.

Although industry lead-ers are skeptical about the Obama administra-tion’s proposal to raise the requirement as high as 60 mpg by 2025, they remain committed to hitting the 35.5 target.

“There’s been a fun-damental change in the industry’s thinking,” AAM’s Bergquist said. “We looked at the world and we see a very precari-ous energy situation, and we would like this coun-try to have a comprehen-sive energy plan looking forward.”

MILEAGEFrom Page 1 / CARS

MIAMI BEACH — Car Charging Group Inc. and King Airport Parking LLC have completed the installation of the first electric vehicle charging station in the Jackson-ville area.

The station is located at King’s Jacksonville International Airport location at 1771 Airport Road. Travelers wish-ing to charge their elec-tric vehicles now have access to Level II, 240-volt ChargePoint equip-ment, manufactured by Coulomb Technologies.

“The ultimate success of electric vehicles will rely upon making the charg-ing process easy and con-venient for consumers,” said Michael D. Farkas, CEO of Car Charging Group. “The King Air-port installation is part of Car Charging Group’s aggressive national roll-out of charging stations

designed to serve drivers of the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt, among the many others models slated to hit the roads soon.”

Car Charging provides EV charging stations at no charge to property owners/managers while retaining ownership, thus allowing drivers access to convenient locations and landowner partners to realize a percentage of the charging revenue generated.

“This charging station is part of the developing smart grid, which uses the latest in communications and technology to offer travelers using Jackson-ville Airport an integrat-ed and remotely operable option to ensure their cars are charged upon their return,” said Alex Sivar of King Airport Parking. “Our networked parking space is certain to become a popular spot for trav-elers utilizing Jackson-

ville International Airport because they will have the ability to start and stop a charging session directly from an iPhone or Blackberry smart phone or iPod Touch to ensure their vehicle is ready to go when they are.”

Car Charging Group Inc. intends to develop a nationwide network of charging stations that enables electric vehicle owners to charge their EVs anytime, anywhere. As part of its strategy, the company owns, pro-vides, installs and main-tains the charging units and works with its land-owner partners to identify appropriate locations for its charging stations. The charging stations are typ-ically in customer-friendly public locations, including municipalities, shopping malls, parking garages, and multi-family residen-tial and commercial prop-erties.

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‘07 HONDA Element

$16,9801-866-938-4982

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‘09 HONDA Fit

$16,7801-866-938-4982

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1.8l i4, a/c, abs, tilt and telescopic steering wheel, cd, ps, 1.8l

‘10 TOYOTA Corolla

$15,9901-866-938-4982

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‘09 SUBARU Impreza Sedan

$15,9801-866-938-4982

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‘08 LEXUS ES 350

$25,7911-866-938-4963

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‘06 INFINITI G35 Coupe

$17,9951-866-527-5191

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‘07 SUBARU Forester

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8 cylinder, a/c, rwd 4dr limited, abs, rear air conditioning, tilt- adjustable steering wheel, cd


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‘09 TOYOTA RAV4

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‘11 HONDA Fit

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‘11 HONDA Fit

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‘11 HONDA Accord

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‘08 HONDA CR-V

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‘08 NISSAN Altima

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‘11 HONDA Civic

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‘09 HONDA Fit

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‘06 TOYOTA Sienna

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‘06 FORD F-150

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‘11 HONDA Fit

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‘03 HONDA Pilot

$13,9801-866-938-4982

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$13,9801-866-938-4982

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$19,9001-866-938-4963

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$15,9901-866-527-5191

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$14,9801-866-938-4982

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$14,9801-866-938-4982

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‘09 HONDA Fit

$14,9801-866-938-4982

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‘06 TOYOTA Sienna

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$14,9801-866-938-4982

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‘06 FORD F-150

$23,9901-866-938-4963

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$16,7801-866-527-5191

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‘06 JEEP Wrangler

$15,9951-866-527-5191

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‘08 NISSAN Altima

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‘07 HONDA Element

$16,9801-866-938-4982

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‘09 HONDA Fit

$16,7801-866-938-4982

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$15,9901-866-938-4982

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$15,9801-866-938-4982

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‘08 LEXUS ES 350

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$17,9951-866-527-5191

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$16,9801-866-527-5191

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$18,9801-866-938-4982

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‘09 TOYOTA RAV4

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‘11 HONDA Fit

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$28,2101-866-938-4982

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‘11 HONDA Accord

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‘08 HONDA CR-V

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‘08 NISSAN Altima

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‘11 HONDA Civic

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Window defroster can be fixed without replacing glassQuestion: I just

noticed my rear win-dow defroster has a big gap in the middle that doesn’t defrost. It’s about 2 inches high. I was told the window needs to be replaced to fix this, and it’s real-ly expensive. Is there a cheaper way to fix it?

Answer: Yes, you should be able to fix the defroster, and at low cost. The inside sur-face of your rear win-dow contains a delicate network of conduc-tive strips that have been silk-screened then baked onto the glass. A conductor on one side of the window receives voltage when the defroster is turned on, and another on the oth-

er side is connected to the vehicle body. Each stripe bridges between the two conductors and acts as an electri-cal resistor, giving off heat as electric current passes through it.

Rear window defrost-er strips are easily damaged. It doesn’t take much to scratch or scrape a void, creating an incomplete circuit, which results in a loss of heat in that area of the glass. Sometimes the entire window can fail to be heated if the fragile wire connec-tions break away from the window conductors. That is more difficult to fix.

The first step in

repairing bad strips is to identify specifi-cally which ones are faulty. During a frosty morning, look closely and note which strips are inoperative. Next, when it’s a more pleas-ant time to work, per-form a close visual inspection of the trou-blesome strips from the inside, looking for damage. If you can’t find any, an inexpen-sive automotive test light will be needed to find the exact spot to repair.

Next, pick up a defroster repair kit from your local auto parts store, along with that test light, if need-ed. The kit should cost

about $15.Clip the test light’s

alligator clip to a bare metal vehicle part, such as a door or hatch latch striker. Now, with the ignition key turned to run/on, and the defroster switch on, gently touch a good defroster strip with the test light’s pointy tip, about in the center of the window. You’ll find the light glows dimly, which is a good thing, as that strip is drop-

ping voltage progres-sively across its length.

Now you’re ready to go after the other strips, and you’ll see the difference. Touch the test light gently to each suspect strip, in various spots across its length. You’ll find the light glows brightly or not at all, depending on which side of the injury you touch. Keep prob-ing until you find the exact spot where the light brightens or dims,

and that’s the place to fix. Be careful not to create new injuries with the test light’s sharp tip — touch, don’t sweep, the light along the strip.

To make the repair, you’ll apply masking tape to each side of the strip and apply the repair product, which resembles thick paint, to the injured area.

Follow the kit instructions regard-ing specific application method, cure time and tape removal, and you should be back in busi-ness.

n Brad Bergholdt is an automotive technology instructor at Evergreen

Valley College in San Jose, Calif. Readers may send him e-mail at under-the-

[email protected].

By Brad BergholdtMCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE Under the hood It doesn’t take much to scratch or scrape

a void, creating an incomplete circuit, which results in a loss of heat in that

area of the glass. Sometimes the entire window can fail to be heated if the fragile

wire connections break away from the window conductors.

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Even with luxury touches, Honda Accord is subduedMost of us favor the

familiar over the foreign, and that’s what makes the 2011 Honda Accord so popular. We know what it offers: room and refine-ment and enough sporty manners to prevent you from nodding off while commuting.

But looking at the large gray sedan delivered for a weeklong test drive, I could only think of the Hyundai Sonata, a dar-ing design challenge to the conservative styling that dominates this seg-ment and is typified by the Accord.

By comparison, the Honda, with its silver exterior and black inte-rior, seems particularly joyless, despite the fact that the Accord in ques-tion is a new model, the

Special Edition, or SE. The SE takes all of the

equipment of the inexpen-sive LX-P model and, for an extra $750, adds leath-er-trimmed seating, heat-ed front seats, driver’s power-lumbar support and a leather-trimmed steering wheel.

This may sound lavish until you climb into the car and notice what is absent. Rear-view cam-era? Nope. Navigation system? AWOL. Trans-mission paddle shifters? You wish. The overall ambience is very sub-dued, lacking the opu-lent feel the package’s contents imply.

But look closer, and you’ll find this package is more about value than it is about lavishness. The tilt/telescopic steering wheel is a manual affair, but finding a comfy driv-

ing position is easy. The driver has a good view of surrounding traffic, a rarity as more auto-makers shrink the size of their windows.

As with the rest of the car, the engine is frugal. Standard on the SE, LX and LX-P is a 177-horse-power, 2.4-liter four-cyl-inder engine mated to a five-speed transmission, either manual or auto-matic. EX and EX-L four-cylinder sedans have the same engine, but with 13 more ponies under the hood.

Performance seems perfectly adequate, but little more. It’s perfect-ly peppy around town, although this sedan lacks the obvious punch of the V6 model. The flip side is decent fuel economy for such a large car.

The Accord goes about

its business with a bit more gusto than most of its competitors, and this makes it a some-what entertaining sedan to pilot through clogged arteries. Body lean is held in check, and stopping is progressive and fuss-free. The ride is as comfort-able as waist-extender pants.

The EPA considers the Accord a large car, and the Accord easi-ly swallows four corn-fed Americans — five if they’re related — with-out excuses. The seats are supportive, even on long drives; the trunk is spacious enough for most needs.

The instrument panel is straightforward and easy to use, once you’re accustomed to the four knobs and 30 buttons just right of the driver.

Cabin storage space is generous.

And, as you’d expect of a sedan, the Accord is stuffed with airbags, stability control, traction control and any number of electronic braking aids to ensure that you don’t unintentionally re-sculpt your car.

There’s little here to offend, but also little to excite, unless you like a good deal. That’s because the SE offers a price break, offering a little extra luxury on a lower-end model. Throw in the Accord’s good fuel econ-omy and sizeable cabin, and it’s easy to see why the Accord continues to attract buyers.n Larry Printz is automotive

editor at The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk, Va. He

can be reached at larry.printzpilotonline.com.

By Larry PrintzTHE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 2011 HONDA

ACCORD SEDANWhat we say: Frugality with a touch of luxuryPro: Fuel economy, handling and size at a modest priceCon: Somber colors lend a dull feel to the cabinEngine: 2.4-liter DOHC four-cylinderWheelbase: 110.2 inchesLength: 194.9 inchesWeight: 3,301 poundsCargo space: 14.7 cubic feetEPA rating (city/high-way): 23/34 mpgFuel consumption: 25 mpgFuel type: RegularBase price, base mod-el: $21,180Base price, test mod-el: $23,730As tested: $24,480

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My first reaction upon see-ing the new Fiat 500 was “Ciao bello!” It’s about time a little Italian style entered the sub-compact segment.

Low cost and high fuel econ-omy have dominated the buying decisions of subcompact drivers for too long. Efficiency’s all fine and good, but it’s sort of like wheat toast. It’s better with a swipe of butter.

With its 500 for 2012, Fiat is making a perfectly timed re-entry into the U.S. market after a 28-year absence.

Four-dollar-per-gallon gas was the tipping point that got drivers thinking — and buy-ing — small almost three years ago, the last time fuel prices surged as rapidly as they’re doing today.

In the current post-econom-ic-meltdown marketplace, how-ever, downsizing consumers

who willingly trade space for fuel efficiency are increasingly hesitant to also sacrifice style, technology and fun.

Starting at $16,000, the Fiat 500, or Cinquecento as it’s known in its native land, is a modern take on the 54-year-old original with a reshaped and slightly larger body style inspired by the low-set and rounded lines of its 1957 pre-decessor.

Available at Fiat “studios,” the 500 went on sale this month. Seventeen of a planned 130 sites are up and running in the U.S. The majority of these sales loca-tions should be open by August. Even now, many of the 130 deal-ers have demo units.

Powered by a 1.4-liter, inline four-cylinder engine, the 500 uses Fiat’s patented Multi-Air system to meet customers’ and manufacturers’ increasing desire for fuel efficiency.

Making its debut on the 500,

the technology electronically adjusts the engine’s air and fuel intake, boosting the car’s mile-age (to a maximum of 38 miles per gallon on the highway) and power (to a modest 101 horses and decent-for-its-size 98 pound-feet of torque).

The 500 comes in three ver-sions — Pop, Sport and Lounge. The entry-level Pop and athletic Sport are available with either five-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmissions. The more luxurious Lounge is avail-able only as an automatic.

The Sport version I tested has slightly larger, 16-inch wheels than the other two models and a sport-tuned suspension. Mine had a five-speed manual that not only gets better fuel econo-my (30 mpg city) than the auto-matic but also has a sport mode. All three models are equipped with this sport button, which, when pushed, makes the 500 almost as perky as a shot of

espresso. Pressing “sport” on the dash

improves the steering feel at higher speeds as well as the throttle’s responsiveness, while also lifting the transmission shift points to higher rpm. Not pressing the sport button? It’s like driving a different car — one that’s as weak and unsat-isfying as diner coffee.

Enhancing the fun of sport mode is the car’s power rack-and-pinion steering with electric power assist. The wheel feels light and turns almost as free-ly as the wheel in a NASCAR arcade game, although, because the 500 is front-wheel drive, the steering does tense up under hard acceleration.

The 500 I was testing had a banana yellow exterior and chocolate brown leather trim inside. The color combination is sort of like a Ferrari-red gon-

By Susan CarpenterLOS ANGELES TIMES

Trading space for Italian style in 2012 Fiat 5002012 FIAT 500Base price: $16,000 (including destination charge) Price as tested: $19,050 Powertrain: 1.4-liter, SOHC, inline four-cylinder, 16 valves per cylinder, liquid cooled, sequential multiport electronic fuel injection, five-speed manual transmis-sion Horsepower: 101 at 6,500 rpm Torque: 98 pound-feet at 4,000 rpm Curb weight: 2,363 pounds Wheelbase: 90.6 inches Overall length: 139.6 inch-es 0 to 60: 9.7 seconds (according to Motor Trend magazine) EPA fuel economy: 30 mpg city/38 mpg highway Final thought: Low-cost, stylish fun

DOn KElsEn/Los Angeles Times/MCTThe 2012 Fiat 500 marks the Italian manufacturer’s return to the U.S. market after a 28-year absence. Starting at $16,000, the two-door, four-seat subcompact comes in three versions and gets up to 38 mpg highway.

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dola with leather bench seats — unusual but odd-ly pleasing and very, very Italian.

A two-door hatchback, the Fiat 500 has a decent amount of legroom for those in the front buck-et seats, but anyone with big hair, a long torso or an overall height exceed-ing 6 feet is likely to feel claustrophobic and boxed in by the roof.

It is, after all, a sub-compact — one that supposedly seats four, although the only person I felt comfortable seat-ing in the back was my 8-year-old. He didn’t com-plain about the legroom, but he thought the head rests were uncomfortable. I wouldn’t recommend the back seat for adults, because the legroom is vir-tually nil.

The rear cargo hold

is, likewise, small. The rear seat splits in two seg-ments and folds down to open up more space, but it doesn’t fold flat. Still, there is more than enough space to carry groceries, laundry or a pile of body-boards and beach tow-els. The car’s wide rear end benefits the tailgate, which has a fairly broad opening.

From the driver’s per-spective, the cockpit is attractive and intriguing-ly well arranged. In addi-tion to a USB port, the usual steering-wheel con-trols for hands-free phone calls and, surprisingly, high-fidelity Bose audio, it features an LCD dash-board display that’s con-figured something like a combination lock.

Three concentric gauge-cluster rings in front of the driver offer different pieces of information. The outermost ring is an analog speedometer and the center ring an

analog tachometer. The innermost circle is a dig-ital display of the time, gas gauge, odometer and engine temperature, as well as the radio settings and turn-by-turn naviga-tion directions.

The circular theme isn’t

as dramatic or as over-sized in the Fiat as it is in the BMW Mini, which will finally get some real com-petition with the 500. It is, however, a stylish detail that’s mirrored elsewhere in the cabin — with circu-lar vents and controls for

the radio, as well as the mechanism that lifts and lowers the windows.

The circular theme even extends to the car’s driving dynamics. Flip-ping a U-turn was outra-geously easy because of its short wheelbase and tight

turning radius. The Fiat’s 16-inch

wheels are small, like oth-er subcompacts’, and are mostly adequate. Driving through potholes is nev-er a pleasant experience, regardless of what type of car you’re driving. Small wheels like the Fiat’s almost get lost in them if they have the misfortune of driving through rath-er than steering around them.

The MacPherson front suspension and rear twist-beam axle — even with the upgraded sport-tuned coil springs and twin-tube shocks on the Sport — are challenged by rough, post-rain roadways.

Overall, the Fiat 500 is a stylish, well-priced addition to the increas-ingly crowded subcom-pact space. It isn’t perfect, but it is a great value that demonstrates that a lack of funds doesn’t have to mean dowdy design and limp performance.

Don Kelsen/Los Angeles Times/MCTThe 2012 Fiat 500 marks the Italian manufacturer’s return to the U.S. market after a 28-year absence. Starting at $16,000, the two-door, four-seat subcompact comes in three versions and gets up to 38 mpg highway.

FIATFrom Page 10 / CARS

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TALLAHASSEE DEMOCRAT


Auto safety features can dissolve into alphabet soupWhen Carol Grubb

bought her new car, the salesman told her that the “BA” on the invoice stood for “Brake Assist,” but he wasn’t able to tell her much more about what brake assist actu-ally does, and why she needs it. The Kissimmee resident didn’t even ask about “BFD” — short for “Brake Force Distribu-tion.”

Newer vehicles are available with a grow-ing number of safety fea-tures. But they can turn into a confusing, complex alphabet soup with the shorthand many manu-facturers use. And while a window sticker might spell out what the ini-tials stand for, they sel-dom explain what it real-ly means to a new owner.

Let’s do some decoding: SRS: This is an easy

one, but why the term “Supplemental Restraint System” is used may not be that clear. SRS essen-tially refers to airbags, but the “supplemental” is used to indicate that airbags supplement seat belts — that they can’t protect you unless you are buckled in.

Airbags are designed under the assumption that the driver and pas-sengers will be held in the seat in the event of an accident, and if they aren’t, airbags can cause more harm than good. Aside from a short list of medical reasons — recent pelvic surgery, open heart surgery, that sort of thing — there is no reason not to use seat belts.

And speaking of air-bags, they are multiply-

ing, even in comparatively inexpensive cars. A Scion tC, for instance, which starts at under $20,000, has two front airbags, two front seat-mounted side airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags and front and rear side curtain airbags — all of which can be abbreviat-ed on a window sticker. It also has “active head-rests,” which can actual-ly move to the optimum position in a crash.

A B S : “A nt i - L o c k Brakes” became popu-lar on luxury and per-formance vehicles more than 25 years ago, and gradually migrated down to even the least expen-sive vehicles. Before ABS, it was generally assumed that the quickest way to stop a vehicle was to lock the brakes. If you’ve seen a skid mark, you know

why that isn’t true — rubber melts under the heat and puddles under the tire, and those black streaks are what’s left.

Even worse, you can’t steer left or right when the brakes are locked. NASCAR racers don’t have ABS. And at most every event, you’ll see a driver with the brakes locked, steering away from the wall, but the car won’t turn. ABS uses an onboard computer to sense when each brake is about to lock, and it lets the wheel roll very slightly to prevent skid-ding. One of the neat things about ABS is that it makes other technolo-gies possible, such as:

ESC: “Electronic Stabili-ty Control” is also market-ed under different names by different manufactur-ers. Cadillac calls it “Sta-

bilitrak.” Jaguar calls it “Dynamic Stability Con-trol.” But they typically perform the same func-tion: When onboard sen-sors detect that the vehi-cle is sliding sideways, the onboard computer can actually cut the power, and apply the brakes to one, two, three or all four wheels (it’s tied in with that ABS computer) until the vehicle is under con-trol.

For example, if you drift off the side of the road into the dirt, then try to steer back onto the pavement, a vehicle without ESC can easi-ly go into a spin. For big, ungainly vehicles — large vans, full-sized SUVs, for instance — stability con-trol is a gift. ESC, ABS and SRS — those are the Big Three.

LATCH: Not that long

ago, parents had to try and fasten child car seats to whatever mounting points they could find, but the “Lower Anchor & Tether for Children” sys-tem standardized those mounting points across the industry lineup.

TPMS: There are two “Tire Pressure Monitor-ing Systems” in use — one just tells you that there is a problem with one of the tires (and it could be the spare), while the more sophisticated sys-tem, usually offered on pricier vehicles, tells you which tire has the prob-lem, and may even give you tire pressure read-ings.

n Steven Cole Smith is the automotive editor

at the Orlando Sentinel. Send questions to

scsmithorlandosentinel.com.

By Steven Cole SmithORLANDO SENTINEL

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