(June 18, 2015) WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. — With a significant year-over-year improvement, Korean brands continue to widen the quality gap with other automakers, while Japanese makes collectively fell below the industry average for the first time in 29 years, according to the J.D. Power 2015 U.S. Initial Quality Study (IQS) released Wednesday.

The study examines problems experienced by vehicle owners during the first 90 days of ownership. Initial quality is determined by the number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100), with a lower score reflecting higher quality.

(June 16, 2015) WASHINGTON — Pump prices have climbed higher during the previous week, even though many market experts continue to believe that gas prices are nearing a seasonal high due to the completion of seasonal refinery maintenance and abundant crude oil supplies.  The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline moved higher each of the past six days reaching Monday's average of $2.80 per gallon, AAA reported today.

Monday's average price represents a new 2015 high, and the national average is five cents more than one week ago and 10 cents more than one month ago.

(June 15, 2015) NEW YORK — In the first-ever white paper examining expenses of a New York City UberX driver, policy and financial analyst Lawrence Meyers estimates a cost of 37 cents-per-mile for the average UberX driver, far exceeding what most candidates anticipate.

The paper found that operating costs, plus 31% in commissions, taxes, and fees, caused UberX drivers to lose 68% of pre-tax revenue on the first $1-per-mile of earnings, and 55% on the first $1.50-per-mile.

(June 12, 2015) One of the most comprehensive scientific studies performed on collision avoidance systems in cars reveals that Volvo Cars’ standard City Safety technology reduces insurance claims for rear-end frontal collisions by 28 percent.

Based on real-life accumulated insurance claims data from the Swedish insurers If and Volvia, the study of City Safety performance conclusively reveals the real-life value of auto braking collision avoidance systems.