An early spring for much of North America means many of us can get a jump on outdoor spring projects, and giving your car a quick going over inside and out is a great place to start. In addition to improving its looks, a spring cleaning can help protect the finish, prevent rust, and add to resale value, in addition to making the inside a more pleasant place to be.

Lithium-ion batteries are considered the silver bullet to making electric cars possible. But what kind of lithium-ion batteries? Battery and automakers all tout their own proprietary varieties as superior. So which ones are best?

Over the weekend, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a new law supported by Consumers Union to protect consumers from dealerships and repair shops installing fraudulent air bags. This new crime in the state will carry a fine of $5,000 and/or one year in prison.

With the July 4th holiday right around the corner, consumers are reminded about supporting our economy and buying American-made products. While many products we use are clearly labeled with the country of origin, for vehicles, that’s not always clear cut. So what constitutes an American vehicle? Sure, we think about American-branded automakers--Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors--but many foreign automakers have factories and R&D facilities in the United States and design, develop and build vehicles for sale in this country, employing part of America’s workforce. In several cases, a vehicle wearing a foreign brand, is conceived, designed and built by Americans, in America, for Americans. So you are still supporting U.S. workers throughout the process all the way through dealership personnel.

Sometimes it's worth buying an added-cost car option and sometimes it's not. For example, we've long advocated spending the extra to get a power driver's seat; it almost always improves the driving position. Other times spending more occasionally gets you less.

Knock-off replacement car bumper parts can cause air bags to deploy in low-speed crashes—when they shouldn't—as new testing by Ford shows. The company says that needless air bag deployment can more than double the repair costs of a vehicle...

2008 Dodge Ram with aftermarket bumperPhoto: Courtesy of IIHS The Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA) has just approved a voluntary certification standard that would allow copycat bumpers to match dimensions, material, and construction of original automaker parts and be...

There may be a lithium-ion battery under the hood of your car soon, according to one new exhibitor at the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA) show—even if you don't own or have plans to buy a hybrid. A start-up...

It's not uncommon for people to mix up or use the wrong fluids in their cars, and if they do, the results can vary from irritating to deadly. Below, we outline the potential damage you can do to your...

Fall is an important time to give your car a thorough checkup, before it has to carry you through cold winter months of potentially foul weather. Keeping up with routine maintenance can help ensure reliable operation, and some key...

Our latest car battery test shows that you don't have to spend a fortune to get a top performer. In fact, our tests show that some $75 models work as well or better as competitors at twice the price.We...

Heavy rain has left a large portion of the country drenched, presenting new hazards for motorists. Here in New England, we have had trees down and roads flooded making getting to the office and test track a challenge. Further...

New crash-test video dramatically illustrates what can happen when a cheap aftermarket part suffers even a low-speed impact: It explodes into a shower of pieces. The video, right, first shows a Ford front bumper reinforcement for a 2006-2009 Fusion...

Toyota is getting closer to providing a fix for vehicles included in the recall for sticking accelerator pedals, according to an Associated Press report. The story says that government officials had no objections to a plan to begin delivering parts...

In our ongoing series of Q&A blog columns, we will highlight common and interesting questions related to maintenance, tires and car care.Q: Why do car batteries go dead in winter? A: Cold weather is often fingered as the culprit...