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Automakers can, and do, use your private information however they want

The first paragraph of Mozilla’s *Privacy Not Included" buyerÂ’s guide about car privacy issues is worth repeating here: “Ah, the wind in your hair, the open road ahead, and not a care in the world Â… except all the trackers, cameras, microphones, and sensors capturing your every move. Ugh. Modern cars are a privacy nightmare.” “Ugh” may be an understatement. The crux of the matter is control: The nonprofit Mozilla Foundation has found that vehicle manufacturers have collected tons of “private” data from vehicle operators, thanks to the proliferation of sensors and cameras and smartphones connected in and to cars. In its report, Mozilla found that 25 car brands all failed the consumer privacy tests it carried out. Its research found that 84 percent of car companies review, share or sell data collected from car owners, and that the information was used for reasons unrelated to the operation of a vehicle or to a car brandÂ’s relationship with its owners. And beyond that, the report says that many companies — more than half — “say they can share your information with the government or law enforcement in response to a 'request.' Not a high bar court order, but something as easy as an 'informal request.'” Some other points made by the foundation: — Six car companies can collect intimate information, including a driverÂ’s medical information and genetic information. Plus info about how fast a person drives and the songs he listens to in the car. — Nissan earned its second-to-last spot (Tesla, not surprisingly, was worst) “for collecting some of the creepiest categories of data we have ever seen": In an apparent attack of full disclosure, Nissan said that it can share “inferences” drawn from the data to create profiles “reflecting the consumerÂ’s preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, and aptitudes.” It also collects information about “sexual activity.” It's not clear how they can do that, but in their privacy notice they say they could. Not to be outdone, the report says, “Kia also mentions they can collect information about your 'sex life' in their privacy policy.” — Only two of the 25 brands reviewed, Renault and Dacia, stated that drivers had the right to delete their personal data. The brands are headquartered in Europe, where consumers are protected by General Data Protection Regulation privacy laws.

IIHS says these are the safest cars of 2013

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has revealed its annual list of Top Safety Picks, an award that highlights automobiles it says offer "superior crash protection." A new and still more significant award, the Top Safety Pick+ honor, is given to those vehicles that earn good ratings for occupant protection in four out of five areas of measure. And while some 117 vehicles were given the TSP seal of approval for 2013, just 13 passed muster for TSP+.
To be fair, IIHS only evaluated 29 vehicles with its new testing procedures for TSP+ (we'd expect that the number of qualified cars will rise substantially for 2014). Luxury and Near Luxury midsize cars were the first groups evaluated, followed by midsizers in the Moderately Priced Cars category - unsurprisingly, it's only midsize cars that you'll find among the class this year.
Only two luxury sedans made the list of 13 for 2013: the Acura TL and Volvo S60. The other 11 cars on the list included entries from domestic, Japanese and German car makers: Dodge Avenger, Chrysler 200, Ford Fusion, Honda Accord (sedan and coupe), Kia Optima (but not its close kin, the Hyundai Sonata, strangely), Nissan Altima, Subaru Legacy and Outback, Suzuki Kizashi and the Volkswagen Passat all made the grade.

Wards names its 2015 10 Best Interiors list

Wards Automotive has named the winners of its 10 Best Interior awards, covering a wide but affordable array of vehicles. Where last year's list contained two six-figure vehicles, including the $372,800 Rolls-Royce Wraith, this year's is, well, a whole lot more reasonable. The publication lists the Mercedes-Benz C400 at $65,000 (which seems off), making it the most expensive vehicle here. That said, we'd argue that the entire C-Class line deserves to make this year's list, owing to its varied and high-quality selection of materials. The other vehicle to break the $60,000 mark, meanwhile, is the $60,675 Ford F-150 King Ranch, which has 327,000 pounds of leather lining its interior. Only one other German car, the BMW i3, and one other pickup truck, the GMC Canyon, managed to make this year's list. Here's the full list of this year's winners: 2014 BMW i3 ($52,550) 2015 Chrysler 300C Platinum ($51,175) 2015 Ford F-150 King Ranch ($60,675) 2015 GMC Canyon SLT ($40,465) 2015 Honda Fit EX-L ($21,590) 2015 Jeep Renegade Limited ($33,205) 2015 Kia Sedona SXL ($43,295) 2016 Mazda6 Grand Touring ($33,395) 2015 Mercedes C400 ($65,000) 2015 Nissan Murano SL ($41,905) See what we mean about the mainstream vehicles? Not only is there a distinct lack of luxury brands, it's the price of some of the vehicles that surprise. The Honda Fit, Jeep Renegade and Mazda6 are very reasonably priced, especially when you compare Wards price with the starting price. The Renegade Limited starts at less than $25,000, the Mazda at less than $22K and the Fit at under $16,000. Head over to Wards for a more detailed explanation of why each vehicle won. Featured Gallery 2015 Ward's Automotive 10 Best Interiors View 10 Photos News Source: Wards Automotive BMW Chrysler Ford GMC Honda Jeep Kia Mazda Mercedes-Benz Nissan Truck Crossover Hatchback Sedan nissan murano gmc canyon Interior jeep renegade WardsAuto kia sedona wards 10 best interiors mercedes c400