World's longest fingernails clipped in SUV accident originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 14 Feb 2009 10:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

All owners of 2008 Honda Elements are being asked to stop driving their cars until they have had them inspected at their local Honda dealer. According to a recall issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the front bushing bracket of the left trailing arm of the rear suspension may have been improperly welded. If it fails, it could separate from the trailing arm causing the suspension to release part of the wheel hub, thus leading to a loss of control or crash. Although only 241 Elements are potentially affected (there are specific VIN number ranges during certain production dates), Honda is notifying all owners immediately and will inspect and replace defective parts at no charge. Rather than taking a risk, err on the side of safety and call your Honda dealer if you've got the keys to a 2008 Element in your pocket.

UPDATE: According to Honda spokesman Chris Martin all the affected owners were already notified before this story was published. Approximately half of the affected vehicles were unsold and sitting on dealer lots. Those have already been repaired. If you haven't already heard from Honda than you should be fine.

[Source: NHTSA via Carscoop]

Small recall for big suspension issue on 2008 Honda Element originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you are one of the nearly half-million Americans driving a 1999-2005 Volkswagen Passat, your dealer will be expecting a visit. Every gasoline-powered Passat (the list includes the 1.8-liter I4, 2.0-liter I4, 2.8-liter V6, and 4.0-liter W8) is being recalled for a heat shield issue. Apparently, the shield near the catalytic converter on some automatic-equipped cars may be damaged, so VW wants the dealers to check them out and add additional shielding if necessary.

While it has your attention, Volkswagen has also found some faulty fuel lines on cars with the 1.8-liter turbocharged engine, and some of the all-wheel-drive equipped cars may have damaged fuel tank ventilation valves. Thankfully, no accidents or injuries have been reported from any of the problems. VW will begin notifying owners on May 30.

[Source: Automotive News, subs. req'd]

VW recalling all 410,000 Passats sold between 1999 and 2005 originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Apr 2008 09:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Click above for more pics of this bashed up Nissan GT-R

This isn't the first Nissan GT-R to find itself looking like an accordion. We brought you another shattered GT-R in Hong Kong in early January, and a GT-R fender bender a few days later in Shibuya (Tokyo). An Autoblog tipster just sent us a link to yet another bashed-up GT-R in Malaysia. As a purely objective observation, the latest incident does a decent job of demonstrating the integrity of the Nissan GT-R's safety cage. Too bad it's at the expense of supercar carnage. Are we the only ones who think this Nissan GT-R bloodshed is getting out of hand? Thanks for the tip, Eric!

Gallery: Wrecked Nissan GT-R

Another GT-R bites the dust originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Previously, we learned that it's a bad idea to drift in areas populated with curbs. In this installment of Autoblog's Please Don't Act Like a Dufus lessons, the class will learn that other real-world obstructions can also cause significant damage.

In this particular case, the unfortunate driver of a third-gen Pontiac Trans Am rips some donuts and puts on a decent smoke show - right up until the point where he finds a manhole cover that protrudes above the surface of the pavement. The impact appears to shear something major in the rear axle (likely the axle shaft itself, judging by the intact wheel lugs), and the left rear tire decides that it no longer wishes to support its corner of the vehicle. That's OK - those stock 10-bolt rear ends are ripe for replacement anyways. Too bad the honeycomb wheel had to suffer, but at least the quarter panel didn't hit the ground.

[Source: Streetfire via CamaroZ28.com]

How not to drift, Vol. II originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 15 Sep 2006 17:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

VIDEO: How not to drift originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 23 Aug 2006 20:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.