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Carmakers, NHTSA to unveil auto-emergency braking agreement tomorrow

Happy St. Patrick's Day Eve. Tomorrow, there will be green beer, corned beef and cabbage, and automatic emergency braking for all. Weird combo, we know. But on St. Patty's we can expect an official announcement from a pact of automakers making auto-braking systems standard equipment by 2022. That's per a report from Reuters, which cites three sources familiar with the plans. Originally announced in September 2015 by 10 automakers and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the agreement is expected to be even larger when the details are unveiled tomorrow. According to Reuters, the manufacturers of 99 percent of the US domestic market's vehicles will be represented by the new agreement. It's believed that standard AEB systems could prevent thousands of accidents across the country. Expect more on the official announcement when it's made. Related Video:

Everyone but VW and Tesla has recalled their Takata airbags

Takata's massive airbag inflator recall affected over 32 million vehicles from 11 automakers in the US, but two companies buying the supplier's parts haven't been affected so far: Volkswagen and Tesla. There are 887,055 VWs and 184,926 Teslas using Takata's inflators with ammonium-nitrate propellant, a new accounting shows, according to Automotive News. That doesn't necessarily mean the models need to be recalled. These figures came from a report that Takata prepared for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which listed all of the vehicles it supplied with ammonium nitrate-fueled inflators. The substance is believed to be linked with the components' rupturing, along with manufacturing defects and humidity. "We're not asking because we've got reports of problems; we just need to figure out what the universe is," NHTSA spokesman Gordon Trowbridge said to Automotive News. Takata reportedly told Tesla that the inflators in its EVs are not affected with these problems, and VW is investigating a case in June where a side airbag allegedly burst in a 2015 Tiguan, Automotive News reports. The government is also still researching the precise cause of the parts' ruptures. If the investigation finds ammonium nitrate to be a factor, the vehicles could need recalled. During a Congressional hearing Takata vice president Kevin Kennedy admitted that ammonium nitrate could be among the factors of the ruptures, but the company has continued to use the chemical in its inflators. Takata is now working to transition to a different propellant. Related Video:

Tesla settles lemon lawsuit brought on by Lemon Law King Vince Megna

As much as we're weary about giving so-called Lemon Law King Vince Megna more space on these pages, we've decided it's worth letting you all know that his client has settled his lawsuit with Tesla Motors over a Model S sedan that he claims was a lemon. As you may remember, the electric sedan in question, a 2013 Signature Performance Model S, was owned by a doctor in Wisconsin who claimed that his shiny new car required servicing so often that he had it in the shop for 66 days in his first few months of ownership. The owner claims to have asked Tesla to buy the car back three separate times and claims to be able to provide proof of such, though Tesla previously refuted that version of events, suggesting in a blog posting that the owner may have tampered with a fuse. In the end, the two parties decided to settle, with Tesla agreeing to pay Robert Montgomery, the owner, $126,836 to cover the car's cost along with his taxes and attorney fees. Case closed. If you'd like to see Megna's own video discussing the settlement, scroll down below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.