Camero driver caught speeding down Vancouver sidewalk

Pedestrians jumped out of the way after a red Chevrolet Camero convertible was spotted travelling along the sidewalk near Hornby and Dunsmuir in the city's downtown.

Surveillance video caught the tail end of the incident, showing a brave bystander trying to confront the driver. The car is then seen tearing off into traffic. 

Fortunately nobody was injured or killed. Police say they are looking for the driver but do not have a suspect at this time. 

Anyone with information is being asked to call Vancouver Police at 604-717-9974.

Source: AutoBlog.ca

Volkswagen to buy back emissions cheating vehicles, sources say

Volkswagen is expected to buy back 500,000 vehicles which used a defeat-device to cheat emissions tests.

Quoting unnamed sources, Reuters reports the company is expected to make the announcement official when them meet with a US federal judge later today.

The buyback is expected to involve Volkswagen Clean Diesel vehicles with 2.0L engines sold since 2009. This includes the popular Jetta, Golf, and Audi A3 models. Vehicles with larger 3.0L diesels will not be included.

Volkswagen may also offer to repair affected vehicles if US regulators approve of a proposed fix. Owners will have two years to decide whether they want to sell back their vehicles or get them repaired.

The German automaker admitted last year they had been using a device to falsify diesel emissions tests. The vehicles in question will activate their full emissions control system only if they detect they're plugged into testing equipment. During normal driving, the effectiveness of the control system is greatly reduced. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says this exposed people to potentially harmful pollutants.

Volkswagen is still dealing with 500 civil law suits surrounding the issue. Their compensation fund is expected to top more than $1 billion USD on top of the cost of buying back the vehicles. It is unclear how much each owner might receive.


Source: Reuters

Mitsubishi caught cheating fuel economy tests

Mitsubishi Motors has admitted they cheated efficiency tests to overstate the fuel economy of 625,000 vehicles.

The Japanese automaker's tomfoolery was outted by Nissan, a sales partner in its minicar venture.

According to Bloomberg, Mitsubishi modified the weight of cars during testing, as well as used inaccurate tire and air resistance numbers in computer models.

These tests overstated fuel economy between 5 and 10 percent.

Most of the effected vehicles are Kei style cars exclusive to the Japanese market.

Mitsubishi has halted sales and production of the eK Wagon, eK Space, as well as the Nissan badged Dayz and Dayz Roox. 157,000 Mitsubishi cars and 468,000 Nissan cars are involved. A Nissan spokesperson said that sales will not resume until the two companies hold talks regarding compensation.

The fuel economy violations may result in Mitsubishi having to pay back government tax for the vehicles. Mitsubishi's shares fell 15% on the announcement.

Mitsubishi is the latest automaker to come under increased scrutiny for fudging environmental performance numbers. Volkswagen was implicated last year for rigging their diesel vehicles to cheat US emissions tests.

Source: Bloomberg, Engadget
Photo by: DY5W-sport via Wikipedia, used under CC 3.0 license

Gardiner and DVP to close Spring Maintenance

Spring is in the air, which means the Don Valley Parkway is set to close this weekend for its annual maintenance.

Starting Friday at 11pm, the highway will be shut down between the Gardiner and 401. It is scheduled to reopen on April 18th at 5am, just in time for the morning commute.

The closure gives the city a chance to fix potholes and clean out catch basins without having to work in close quarters with the city's notorious traffic.

Of course this will mean big headaches for drivers looking to head downtown. Though fortunately there are no major events happening that weekend.

If you need to to take the DVP, your best bets are Bayview and Don Mills, though expect those to be much heavier than normal