Most cars already have some sort of crash recorder aboard, although the amount of data they collect varies. Beginning next year, the data will become more standardized. Many cars also are equipped with a brake override system that automatically cut the engine throttle if it detects simultaneous input from the brake and accelerator.

Strickland also told the House Energy and Commerce Committee yesterday that NHTSA may need greater authority to set standards for the increasingly complex technology in current vehicles. The committee is investigating NHTSA’s slow reaction to reports of sudden acceleration in Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles.

Strickland, who took charge of the agency in January, says NHTSA is conducting a broad review of vehicle design, including electronics, to determine whether to update design standards, such as those for accelerator pedals.

In other testimony, safety advocate Joan Claybrook, a former NHTSA administrator, called for tougher standards, stiffer penalties for carmakers who fail to recall vehicles and greater disclosure of the data they submit during defect investigations. She also urged Congress to double NHTSA’s $873 million annual budget.

The agency’s Office of Defects Investigation, which is allotted just under $10 million, has 21 defect investigators to handle complaints, which typically average 30,000 per year. NHTSA received 10,000 reports last month. Strickland says the agency’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year would allow him to hire 66 additional safety staffers.

Americans drove fewer miles in 2009 because of the recession. But the fatality rate last year still fell to a record-low of 1.16 deaths per 100 million miles traveled. The rate in 2008 was 1.25 fatalities.

Analysts attribute at least part of the improvement to new safety equipment to avoid accidents or minimize the damage when collisions do occur. NHTSA also credits campaigns to increase seat belt use and discourage drunk and distracted driving.

The panel suggests that separating that unit from GMAC’s ailing mortgage lender Residential Capital would allow the company to put ResCap into bankruptcy without jeopardizing auto financing. About 80% of GMAC’s $10.3 billion net loss last year came from the mortgage unit.

The Treasury Dept., which owns 56% of the finance company, says GM and GMAC would have to work out any merger on their own without government involvement.

The report predicts the U.S. government will lose at least $6.3 billion of the $17.2 billion it has poured into GMAC in the past 15 months. The panel says the Treasury Dept. has not required GMAC to present a plan to restore profitability or a strategy for repaying taxpayers—and urges it to do so. The committee also suggests the company’s top executives may have been overpaid. CEO Michael Carpenter draws annual compensation of $9.5 million and four other managers receive between $7.7 million and $4 million each.

The White House auto task force decided a GMAC bailout was necessary to ensure the uninterrupted availability of loans to the dealers and customers of Chrysler Group LLC and GM, which also were receiving government financing. The task force says a GMAC bankruptcy last year would have been prohibitively expensive and could have reduced U.S. light vehicle sales by 1.5 million units in 2009.

U.S. exports slipped 0.3% to $143 billion, as shipments of civilian aircraft and motor vehicles and parts declined 15% and 6%, respectively. Economists say the export dip, the first in nine months, is worrisome because exports have been an engine for recent economic growth. But most expect export growth to resume in coming months.

Imports declined 1.7% to $180 billion. Oil imports fell nearly $2 billion to $18 billion from December to January, despite a 1% increase in crude prices, because import volume fell to an 11-year low of 245 million barrels. Imports of motor vehicles and parts declined 8% to nearly $17 billion. Economists say the first drop in imports in five months indicates that consumers are still wary about spending.

The company says its Audi, Skoda and VW brands, commercial vehicle unit and finance arm posted operating profits last year. But the Bentley, Lamborghini and SEAT brands lost money.

VW expects to increase volume, sales and operating profit this year by unspecified amounts, saying the world economy has “brightened up a bit.” The company expects demand to perk up in the U.S. This year VW aims to post a pretax profit of more than 8% of sales, up from 1.4% in the first nine months of 2009.

VW says it will ask shareholders at its annual meeting on April 22 to approve a convertible bond issue to give it another option for funding acquisitions, including the 51.1% of Porsche AG it doesn’t already own. VW bought a 19.9% stake in Suzuki Motor Corp. in January.

The company met its goal of posting an annual pre-tax profit: $565 million, up 18% from the previous year. The auto unit lost $363 million before interest and taxes for the full year, but it posted EBIT of $127 million in the fourth quarter.

BMW Group sold 1.29 million vehicles last year, down 10% from 2008. The recession clipped sales in the U.S. (-20%), the company’s second-largest market after Germany. But demand grew 38% and 24% in China and India, respectively, and it more than doubled in Brazil.

BMW predicts higher volume this year, thanks to an improving global market and the launch of new and revamped models.

The company did not specify Takada’s new duties but says the move is intended to solidify ties with its affiliate. It is the first time Toyota has sent a top executive to Fuji Heavy, in which it owns a 16.5% stake.

As general manager of corporate planning, Takada helped form Toyota’s alliance with Fuji Heavy in 2005. The two companies are jointly developing hybrid vehicles, and Fuji Heavy produces Camry cars at its Subaru plant in Lafayette, Ind.

Fleet will succeed Dave Alden, who will retire on May 1 after 32 years at Ford. In his new job, Fleet will be based in Bangkok and overseas operations in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. He joined Ford in 1989 in the U.K. and has held a series of sales and marketing jobs in Europe.

Chevrolet Cruze

General Motors Co. North America President Mark Reuss says in a Web chat with consumers that GM is considering a two-door variant of its new Cruze compact sedan, which bows this fall in the U.S.

He also says the U.S. may get a new model based on GM’s rear-wheel-drive Zeta platform. Developed by GM’s Holden unit in Australia, the Zeta platform currently carries the Holden Commodore sedan and Chevrolet Camaro. A new Commodore is due in Australia in 2013.

Eaton plans to launch the technology on an unnamed 2012 hybrid vehicle. It’s also working with other OEMs and fuel tank suppliers, and says it is in the prototype phase on several programs.

In full-hybrid vehicles that can run for extended distances in all-electric mode, the combustion engine is used significantly less than in a traditional vehicle. The fuel system is closed when the engine is off, which allows pressure in the tank to reach 5-7 psi vs. 1-2 psi for a conventional vehicle. The higher pressure increases the potential for hydrocarbons to leak into the atmosphere.

To alleviate pressure, full hybrids use an electronically controlled valve that vents the hydrocarbons into the engine, where they are burned off.

Eaton says its integrated system, including solenoids and vapor management valves, improves the concept by optimizing the overall design. As a result, it was able to reduce part count and cut weight by one-third to about 1 lb.

The system can be teamed with an optional pressure sensor to detect fuel system leak detection and purge control. Temperature sensing can be added for additional system monitoring and control.

Unlike current devices that must be mounted in a specific spot, Eaton’s design allows for flexible mounting and porting options. Electrical connections, pressure and flow settings also can be customized to meet different vehicle requirements.