Many makes of cars now have the windshield washer fluid coming out of small rubber tubes attached to the windshield wipers. When I was driving on the Pennsylvania turnpike in January the windshield washer fluid froze within the tubes and would not come out. This creates a dangerous situation in which road salt splashed from other cars fairly quickly builds up on your windshield and you can hardly see out of the windshield while driving over 60 mph on an interstate highway. The day was cold, perhaps 14 degrees, but not extremely cold and this was Pennsylvania not Minnesota nor Canada. My guess is that the 14 degrees weather plus driving at 70 miles per hour creates a windchill that is below the -20 degrees that the washer fluid is good for. But it is on cold winter days that you specifically need the windshield washer fluid because of the salt left on the road. The fluid began to flow again when I got into slightly warmer temperatures in Maryland. I never diluted the windshield fluid with water. For this winter I have bought windshield washer fluid that is good to minus 38 degrees and have also bought an alcohol additive for the fluid that will make it good to about minus 40 degrees and I will see if that works. But many drivers won't know ahead of time to do that, and almost all gas stations only sell the standard -20 fluid. I think that car manufacturers in designing future models should go back to the old system of windshield washer fluid coming out of slits in the hood instead of coming out of the windshield wipers.

- Washington, DC, USA

The consumer said that she was driving down the interstate when the passenger window blew out, for no reason. The flying glass nicked and gouged the paint on the vehicle. The consumer feels that the window or the vehicle is defective.

- Laurel, MT, USA

I purchased a new 2002 Chevy Malibu on August 1, 2002. Four days and 250 miles later the front passenger window "exploded" while I was traveling alone down I-90 at 75 miles an hour. I feel there was a defect in the window or the car itself to have this happen for "no apparent " reason. I had to have the car window replacd and the right exterior of the car repainted from the flying glass nicking and gouging the outside of the car. I had broken glass in both the front and back seats. The window and painting was repaired under warranty through the dealership. When I picked the car up from getting it repaired I noticed they (bodyshop) had snapped both rear seatbelts. When I got the car home, I unsnapped the seat belts and noticed they would not retracted back in, but instead, just hung down onto the seat. I called cory peterson, head of sales, and told him about the seatbelts, and he told me to take the car in the next day, September 14th, to have them checked. My husband and I took it in, and dave halland looked at both seat belts and said, "they are worn out." I said "worn out! the car is a month old!" he did not have replacement parts that that time and said he would order them and set us up for an September 20th appointment. I took it back on that date, and was told the parts were not in. He had another man check out the seat belts at this time and he said the "retractors" were defective and the entire seat belts had to be replaced. Dave halland again told me he would have the parts over night expressed and would call me when they were in. I waited and waited and finally called for dave on September 30th and October 1, 2002. And left a message for a call back. After no word, I called a requested to talk to the service manager. I was turned over to terry, and he told me the parts had been there for over a week. I told him I wanted the parts when they were removed and he told me I could not have them. I said, "I bought this car, didn't I?" he said"

- Laurel, MT, USA