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"Ford Explorer Seats, VW Passat Airbags Investigated    The government is opening an investigation into \u2014 model years 1998 to 2000 \u2014 after 23 reports that the seat back can recline without warning, Bloomberg News reported. The investigation would affect 1.2 million vehicles. Twelve reports of seat failures were made in the last year. Three crashes were reported including one injury after the driver hit a tree.   The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is reviewing reports of air bag failures that could affect 350,000 sedans. The probe is directed at model years 1998 to 2002. NHTSA received two reports that air bags did not deploy properly on the passenger side. A summary report indicated that studs and bolts failed to keep the equipment properly in place. The reviews are the first steps in a possible recall. Only two out of 10 initial reviews prompt further action.   Ford Police Cars Under Scrutiny, Again   Pointing to the recent death of a Missouri state trooper in a Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer said the government should begin a new investigation into deadly gas tank explosions in the vehicles, the Dow Jones reports.   There are nearly 350,000 of the vehicles patrolling in 80 percent of the nation&amp;#039;s police departments. Over the last 20 years, fourteen police officers have died in crashes when the Crown Victoria gas tank caught fire following a severe rear end crash. In the latest crash, the vehicle had been retrofitted by Ford with a plastic shield designed to better protect the gas tanks.   The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration concluded a 10-month probe last November and determined that the Crown Victoria&amp;#039;s fuel system involved in a rear crash caught fire 8 percent of the time, compared with the fuel system in the comparable Chevrolet Caprice which caught fire in the same circumstance 6.3 percent of the time. The agency said the car meets current federal standards by withstanding a rear crash at 30 mph without leaking fuel. It did not leak fuel when hit in a test at 50 mph, which would satisfy NHTSA&amp;#039;s proposed new standard. Almost all the fuel leaks which lead to fires occurred after a very high speed crash \u2014 almost always higher than 60 mph and some as high as 84 mph.   GM Sees the Light   General Motors Corp. will launch an ad campaign aimed at American consumers who don&amp;#039;t consider GM products when shopping for a new car or truck. It starts in print media the first week of June with an ad called &amp;quot;The Road to Redemption.&amp;quot; With higher levels of consumer satisfaction and a better model line up, GM is asking for a second chance with disillusioned buyers. The campaign goes along with the GM 24-Hour Test Drive which gives potential customers the chance to take a new GM car or truck home for a day, and its Auto Show in Motion which pits GM models against their competitors in test drives staged around the country. All GM brands in the United States, including Saturn and Saab, are featured in the ads, which will run in national and regional newspapers and magazines.   The ads will include recent results of the J.D. Power and Associates 2003 Initial Quality Study, where fourteen GM vehicles ranked in the top three of their respective segments, including three that came in first. In addition, five of the top six highest quality assembly plants in North and South America were GM plants, including the first-place plant (Oshawa 1 in Canada) and second-place plant (Lansing Grand River in Michigan). "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a9879/ford-explorer-seats-vw-passat-airbags-investigated/>