ˆ Microheat files for bankruptcy after GM recall

tags : circuit board , circuitboard , cleaning , fire , fluid , fuse , general motors , generalmotors , heated , hot spot , hotspot , microheat , pcb , recall , windshield

Microheat Inc., the company responsible for inventing and supplying General Motors with their HotSpot windshield cleaning system, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The technology utilized heated liquid to clean the front glass of debris, ice, and snow. Unfortunately, a short circuit on a printed circuit board could overheat and lead to a fire (removing contaminants from much more than just the front windshield). As a result, GM recalled 944,000 vehicles and dropped Microheat, and their HotSpot product, from the lineup. Even with the system no longer offered on vehicles, things are cooking in court as GM is now seeking $20-25 million in damages to cover the cost of the recall. Without the assets to cover the charges, bankruptcy protection could only be expected. While GM's HotSpot recall solves the overheating problem with a simple inline fuse, the new filing by Microheat only seems to be fueling the fire.

posted : 10/16/2008 @6:08:57 PM

ˆ GgggM CcCancels heated washer fluid option

tags : discontinue , discontinue washer fluid , discontinued , discontinued products , discontinuedproducts , discontinuewasherfluid , general motors heated washer fluid , generalmotorsheatedwasherfluid , gm heated washer fluid , gmheatedwasherfluid , heated washer fluid , heatedwasherfluid

In a move that might frost your cupcakes, General Motors has dropped the heated windshield washer fluid option on all models. The feature was a big part of Buick advertising in the recent past, but GM has either not had enough takers, or there are issues with the OEM for the system components. Either way, you're going to have to chip the ice off the windshield of your brand new Traverse the same way we've done it since the invention of the wheel: cold, freezing, wet, and swearing. In all honesty, heated washer fluid is better in theory than in practice. It may help a little bit, but the windshield has a lot of "thermal inertia" and the glass is what really needs to be warmed up. Those of us who thought we were smart wrapping the washer fluid line around a radiator hose back in the day discovered this, and now it seems GM has found out the same thing. Maybe Tata could hook The General up with Range Rover's windshield supplier, and we could all rock Lucernes with defroster grids in the front glass. Obviously, cars already built with the system will hit dealerships so equipped, but any vehicles that are pending will have the option deleted and a price adjustment made.

posted : 9/24/2008 @10:46:22 PM

ˆ GM recalls 857,735 vehicles for electrical issue

tags : gm recall , gmrecall , heated windshield wipers , heatedwindshieldwipers , recall

In the ongoing quest to make our cars more user-friendly, automakers have been adding more and more techno-goodies to make our lives just a bit easier, as well. Unfortunately, these features occasionally do the exact opposite as electrical gremlins take control and make them malfunction. Such is the case with a 857,735 vehicles from General Motors built between 2006 and 2008 that are equipped with heated windshield washer fluid. Apparently, the system is liable to short out, causing it to stop working and even smoke, give off an odor, and make other on-board electronic systems go haywire. To remedy the problem, dealers will add a new wiring harness with an in-line fuse, which will short out before the problematic printed electrical circuit does the same. We've pasted a list of all the affected vehicles after the break.

posted : 9/14/2008 @4:15:02 AM

ˆ We knew it! Heated seats boil your boys

tags : danger heated seats , dangerheatedseats , heated seats , heatedseats , men heated seats , menheatedseats , reproduction , sperm heated seats , spermheatedseats

Heated seats can be just what the doctor ordered in the middle of winter, but if you're trying to pass on your car-loving gene pool, you may be better off freezing. Scientists studying male fertility have discovered that the proliferation of heated seats raises the temperature of your junk by a full degree Fahrenheit verses sitting in the car without artificially warmed seats. That's enough to cut your chances of reproducing, and it makes us strategically point a fan at close range just thinking about it. Even without electronically warmed seat bottoms, guys that sit in the car for long periods of time raise the temperature of their man parts by a couple degrees above optimal sperm-making levels. Hmmm, just typing "above optimal sperm-making levels" makes us a bit queasy. The cure? Turn off the heated seats, wear boxers, and don't sit in the car for too long at once. OK... lets talk about something else.

posted : 9/13/2008 @6:32:44 AM

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