There are very few instances in which we would advocate the smashing up of cars (separate from where they are monster truck fodder or demolition derby participants(, but this is one of them. More and more states are protecting citizens from legal repercussions if they break into a hot car to relieve a trapped dog and Tennessee just joined the list.
NBC News reports that the law is an extension of Tennessee’s existing Good Samaritan law, which protects people from liability for any damage done to a vehicle if it’s done to save a trapped child.
This doesn’t give Tennesseans license to smash car windows as soon as they see a puppy hanging out in a vehicle. The dog has to be “in a state of imminent danger of suffering harm” and those concerned have to try alternative means of entry — checking if the car’s unlocked first- and they have to notify authorities.
“There is a startling gap between those who state they would act and those who actually did something when faced with the reality of a dog at risk,” said Dr. Louise Murray, Vice President of the ASPCA Animal Hospital. In fact, a recent ASPCA poll showed only 63 percent of people polled who have encountered a dog in a hot car took any sort of action.
Tennessee is now the 16th state with an actual statute in place meant to protect dogs locked in hot cars. Separate from these direct protection law, leaving a dog in a hot car in Tennessee or any other state could still be a violation of the animal cruelty code, landing the owner in legal trouble.
We all know how hot a car can get just sitting in the parking lot, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be on a warm day. Smashed windows and messy legal situations, not to mention public derision (and most importantly, suffering canines) can all be avoided by people showing a little empathy for their furry friends.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.