West County Auto Plaza

It was just a few months ago that Nissan announced it had sold over 10,000 all-electric Leaf electric cars around the world. Speaking before the start of the Tokyo Motor Show today, company officials confirmed to Autoblog that the automaker has sold over 20,000 Leafs since the electric car went on sale in December of 2010. Of that total, over 60 percent of the roughly 9,000 Leafs sold in the U.S. so far this year (we'll get specific numbers later this week) have found homes in California. Furthermore, Nissan is on track to eclipse 10,000 Leafs sold in the U.S. by the end of the year - perfectly in line with what the automaker expected.

A recent study conducted by the Highway Loss Data Institute claims that hybrid vehicles do a better job of protecting their occupants in accidents compared with their conventional gas-powered twins. "On average, the odds of being injured in a crash are 25 percent lower for people in hybrids than people traveling in nonhybrid models," the HLDI reports. The main reason the HLDI says hybrids are safer for passengers is that they typically weigh more than their gas-powered siblings due to their heavy battery packs. "For instance, a Toyota Highlander Hybrid weighs about 4,500 pounds compared to 4,170 pounds for the gas-powered Highlander," Kicking Tires reports. "The extra mass gives the weightier vehicle an advantage in a crash because it will push a smaller, lighter car backward on impact, according to IIHS."

The HLDI, which is an affiliate of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, says that it comes down to physics. ?In a collision involving two vehicles that differ in size and weight, the people in the smaller, lighter vehicle will be at a disadvantage,? the HLDI says. The HLDI study analyzed gas-only vehicles with a hybrid sibling, so hybrids like the Toyota Prius weren?t included because they have no gas-only version.

Despite doing a better job of protecting occupants in a crash compared with their gas-only siblings, the HLDI says that hybrid cars can be more dangerous for pedestrians. Hybrid vehicles are up to 20 percent more likely to be involved in a crash with a pedestrian compared with their gas-powered counterparts.

?At low speeds in densely built areas, hybrid cars and pure electric vehicles rely on electric propulsion,? MSNBC reports. ?That makes them much quieter than gas-powered cars, posing a risk to pedestrians.?

By Jeff Sabatini

In the midst of a longer piece on the top-secret Google X lab, The New York Times drops this bomb: "Google may turn one of the ideas - the driverless cars that it unleashed on California's roads last year - into a new business." It was just over a year ago when the world first heard of Google's experiments, deploying Toyota Prius hatchbacks in California to rack up test miles of its self-driving vehicle system. Google launched the program in secret, but has since given presentations on the technology and the company's goals for its deployment. Currently, the cars must have a human behind the wheel to act as a potential override to the system, but Google has indicated that it would like the system to get to the point that it operates free of human intervention. Google is currently working towards racking up over a million driverless miles. While the Times report says that Google is considering building these autonomous cars in the U.S., we've got to believe that this is nothing more than conjecture. Even for a company as large and well-funded as Google, deciding to go into the carmaking business is not something you just jump into, especially not when your sales strategy involves a bleeding edge technology and you haven't shown any desire or aptitude for designing or building nearly any other aspect of an automobile. Autonomous driving tech could be a truly transformative feature, but developing it and selling it to the industry as a supplier would seem to make much more sense, and it would doubtlessly hasten its arrival to the market.

General Motors is recalling around 38,000 Pontiac G8 sedans from its 2008 and 2009 model years. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that the cars may have a passenger-side airbag flaw that might prevent proper deployment in certain scenarios. According to NHTSA, the airbag might not adequately protect a fifth percentile woman - that is, a woman around four-foot, 11-inches weighing 108 pounds. The New York Times indicates that the anomaly was found during a crash test conducted by GM's Australian branch, Holden, which was testing the G8's twin for head injuries. According to that report, the test in question is specifically tailored to simulate injuries to females, so the results do not apply to men or children. The issue has been blamed on a seat position sensor that governs airbag deployment rates. NHTSA indicates that when the front passenger seat is moved all the way forward, the faulty sensor may inappropriately trigger a 30-millisecond delay between airbag stages, potentially leading to greater injuries. With the Pontiac division closed, other GM dealers will reprogram the sensor module of models covered under the recall at no cost to vehicle owners. GM says that no injuries have been reported as a result of this issue

By: Jake Lingeman

BMW is recalling about 32,000 cars and crossovers because the circuit board for the electric auxiliary water pump can overheat. The recall covers the 5-series sedan and Gran Turismo, the 7-series, the X5 and the X6 from the 2008 to 2011 model years equipped with V8 or V12 engines. Two engine fires have resulted from 102 failures, according to BMW. It starts with smoldering of the pump and could spread elsewhere under the hood. BMW will notify owners and dealers will replace the auxiliary water pump free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in November. Owners can call BMW customer relations and services at (800) 525-7417 or NHTSA at (888) 327-4236. More information can also be found at www.safercar.gov, the NHTSA Web site.