The firestorm of Ford trucks erupting into flames has struck in two more states, devastating Ford truck owners in Minnesota and California.

The Ford inferno hit a homeowner in Chisago City, Minnesota last month when her 2000 Ford Expedition “started on fire parked in our attached garage.

Automakers recalled nearly 15 million vehicles for repairs at dealerships last year, the government reported Thursday, an increase of about 30 percent over 2006.
Automakers issued 588 separate recalls involving 14.5 million vehicles in 2007, or about 30 percent more vehicles than the previous year, according to data released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In 2006, the industry recalled 11.2 million vehicles as part of 490 individual recalls.

Fiat is recalling around 2,800 Fiat and Lancia cars in Austria, most of them because of problems with their brake system, Austrian motorist club OeAMTC said on Friday.

American Honda Motor Company has announced that they will be recalling certain models of the 2008 Honda Ridgeline. They stated that on certain vehicles, the hole in the sheet metal front bulkhead that serves as the base and pivot for the hood support rod was not punched to specification. The hood support rod may fail to hold the hood in position due to insufficient strength.

GM announced they are issuing a recall for the 2007 Pontiac Torrent.

Volkswagen AG’s Shanghai venture began recalling 2,440 Passat sedans from last Thursday, following the approval of Volkswagen’s recall application by the State General Administration of Quality Supervision. The reason for the recall was due to the discovery of some problems present in the automatic locking systems