Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008

The Buzz On Business

MEASURE TOUGHENS LEAD STANDARDS: Colton Burkhart was just 4 when he swallowed a quarter-sized medallion that nearly took his life. He didn't choke on it. But the metal trinket from a gumball-type machine contained 39 percent lead, and nearly five years later — after surgery and countless other procedures — the Oregon boy still has elevated levels of lead in his body. Colton's ordeal helped hasten recalls last year of millions of Chinese-produced toys, from Barbie doll accessories to Thomas the Tank Engine. And now his family is celebrating a new law that bans lead from children's toys. President Bush is expected to sign it this week, two weeks after Congress approved the measure. The legislation would impose the toughest lead standards in the world, banning lead beyond minute levels in products for children 12 or younger. Lead paint was a major factor in the recall of 45 million toys and children's items last year, many from China. The bill also bans a chemical called phthalates that is used to make plastic products softer and more flexible. And it bolsters the Consumer Product Safety Commission, doubling its budget and giving it authority to oversee testing and penalize violators.

BMW RECALLS VEHICLES OVER AIR BAG CONCERN: BMW AG said Wednesday it was recalling 200,000 vehicles over concerns that the front passenger air bag might not deploy in a crash. The German automaker said the recall involves the 2006 3 Series, the 2004-2006 5 Series and the 2004-2006 X3 compact sport utility vehicles in the United States. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a posting on its Web site that small cracks could develop in a seat detection mat and deactivate the front passenger air bags. The NHTSA said the air bag warning lamp and the passenger air bag "on-off" light would remain on. The head protection system, however, would not be affected, the government said. BMW spokesman Tom Plucinsky said there were no injuries or accidents reported. To respond to the problem, BMW said it would extend the warranty to 10 years without any mileage limit for the following vehicles: 2006 6 Series, 2006 3 Series with standard seat, 2004-2005 Z4, 2004-2006 7 Series, 2006 X5, and 2004-2006 5 Series with comfort seats. BMW said that under the extended warranty program, the detection mat in a vehicle with the air bag system problems would be replaced at no charge. The company expects to notify owners by mail in late September. Owners can call BMW at 800-525-7417.

HONDA CIVIC HYBRID WILL COST LESS THAN PRIUS: A top Honda Motor Co. executive said Wednesday that the company's new gas-electric hybrid will be priced lower than the Toyota Prius, its prime competitor. The new five-door car will be available only with a hybrid powertrain. It will be smaller than Honda's Civic and will be priced less than a hybrid gas-electric version of the Civic, said Richard Colliver of American Honda Motor Co. Colliver said the new hybrid will be launched in April 2009. The Civic hybrid starts at $22,600 and The Prius at $21,500. Honda has not released fuel economy figures for its new hybrid.

COMPONENT WILL WAKE COMPUTERS WHEN PHONE CALLS COME IN: Intel Corp. is unveiling new technology that will let computers wake up from their power-saving sleep state when they receive a phone call over the Internet. Current computers have to be fully on to receive a call, making them impractical and energy-wasters as replacements for the telephone. The new component Intel is announcing today will let computers automatically return to a normal, full-powered state when a call comes in. The computer can activate its microphone and loudspeaker to alert the user, then connect the call. The first Intel motherboards with the Remote Wake capability will ship in the next month, said Joe Van De Water, director of consumer product marketing for Intel.