1999 Buick Lesabre Custom Sedan 4-door 3.8l on 2040-cars

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Volvo and GM team with Amazon for in-car deliveries

Volvo and GM are the first automakers to pair their vehicles with a new service from Amazon that lets owners have their packages delivered inside their cars, without them having to be there. The service will initially be rolled out in 37 U.S. cities at no extra charge to Amazon Prime members with a Volvo On Call or OnStar account, and it works with same-day, two-day and standard shipping. It's intended as an alternative for people who don't want to risk having their package stolen from their front porch or receive deliveries at their workplace, and both automakers say it's an example of how they're embracing innovation as a way to make their customers' lives easier. Volvo released a video (above) showing how the service works. Users download the Amazon Key App (or " Ama-zin," as the narrator pronounces it) and link their Amazon Prime account with their Volvo On Call account — or OnStar, in the case of GM-branded vehicles. Once they register their delivery location in a publicly accessible location, users can select the "In-Car" option at checkout. They get a notification when the delivery is en route and once it's completed and the car is relocked. Volvo has been offering in-car delivery in certain European countries since 2015 through its Volvo On Call platform, which enables services like the ability to send calendar-based navigation destinations directly to the vehicle, find nearby gas stations and help locate the vehicle when you forget where you parked it. Volvo says the platform is now available in roughly 50 countries and covers more than 90 percent of its global sales. The service is compatible with 2015 or newer Volvo, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC vehicles. Volvo says it's available to the majority of Volvo owners, while GM says more than 7 million vehicle owners can qualify. The service is expected to roll out to more cities later. You can check eligibility at amazon.com/keyincar. Related Video: Buick Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC Volvo Technology Infotainment Amazon connected car volvo on call e-commerce

New GM subcompact SUV spied, could be a Chevy or GMC

GM's pair of subcompact crossovers have been trundling along for a while now. The Buick Encore was the first for Americans in the 2013 model year, and the Chevy Trax that was based on the Encore (an encore of the Encore, if you will) arrived for the 2015 model year. Each has undergone a mild update, but these spy photos could indicate their replacements are in the works. Or not. For starters, we can't be sure which GM brand this new SUV is destined for. Though the timing and its flowing lines could indicate Buick, the thick horizontal bars visible in the grille would indicate otherwise. The next Encore being at least related to this is at least a possibility. Making the case for GMC are those thick grille bars, the fact that it extends far below the lights, and may even rise above them, similar to the Acadia. And that rising beltline isn't that different from that of the Acadia. Arguing against the GMC idea is the Encore, which is almost always sold in GMC-Buick combo dealers. Much as the Acadia was made smaller to eliminate confusion and in-house competition with the Enclave, it's hard to see GM opting to resurrect such an issue at the bottom end of the SUV market. That means we're leaning toward this little SUV wearing a Chevy bowtie. The split grille with a large lower section and small upper section is the brand's current design language, as seen on the new Malibus and Cruzes. The shape is vaguely Equinox-like. And like Buick, Chevy also has a subcompact crossover ready for replacement: the Trax. Now, our photographer reports he's seen another subcompact testing that has Blazer design cues, but in this crossover-hungry market, we wouldn't be surprised if two similarly sized but differently styled Chevy crossovers make the grade. It's a strategy that's working pretty well for Jeep. We'll no doubt be seeing more of these disguised test vehicles milling about the country in the coming months, so perhaps we'll eventually get a better idea of what this is before more official information starts trickling out within one or two years. Related Video: Featured Gallery GM Subcompact Crossover spy shots View 10 Photos Image Credit: SpiedBilde Spy Photos Buick Chevrolet GM GMC Crossover SUV buick encore chevy trax

Fingers point to dragged-out NHTSA investigation after second death by ARC airbag inflator

Safety advocates have increased criticism of the federal government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after an exploding airbag inflator that's been under investigation for more than six years killed a second person.  On Wednesday, NHTSA posted recall documents filed by General Motors that revealed the second death, the driver of a 2015 Chevrolet Traverse SUV with an inflator made by Tennessee company ARC blew apart, spewing shrapnel. No details were given about where and when the death occurred. NHTSA has said that ARC Automotive of Knoxville has manufactured about 8 million inflators used nationwide in vehicles made by General Motors, Fiat Chrysler (now Stellantis), Kia and Hyundai. “NHTSA should have been all over this along time ago,” said Rosemary Shahan, president of California-based Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety. “There's just no denying that itÂ’s a (safety) defect.” NHTSA, the agency charged with with keeping America's automobiles and roads safe, began investigating ARC inflators in July of 2015 after two people were injured by flying shrapnel. The investigation became more urgent in 2016, when a Canadian woman driving an older Hyundai Elantra was killed by metal airbag fragments. Public records show only a little progress on the probe. In April, the agency posted a memo in saying it was reviewing volumes of information it received from ARC. Safety advocates such as Shahan say that the dragged-out investigation is an example of the deadly consequences that can result from an understaffed and underfunded agency. The second death should not have happened, Shahan said, and vehicles with faulty ARC inflators should have been recalled faster. The agency, Shahan said, is “grossly underfunded," but it still should have sought recalls of the ARC inflators. She said historically NHTSA has taken little action during Republican administrations but has ramped up safety efforts when Democrats control the White House. Messages were left Wednesday by the Associated Press seeking comment from NHTSA and ARC. At this time, relatively few vehicles are effected. The GM recall covers only 550 Chevy Traverse SUVs from the 2013 through 2017 model years, as well as Buick Enclave SUVs from 2008 through 2017. The automaker said in a statement that the faulty front driver's airbag inflators were either installed at the factory or in replacement airbag modules.