Ford had the most

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• Automakers issued 96 recalls covering 8.5 million vehicles in Q3 2025, the highest since early 2024

• Ford led all automakers, responsible for nearly 60% of recalled vehicle

• Most recalls involved critical safety systems like brakes, fuel, and back-over prevention

Regular ConsumerAffairs readers will not be surprised to learn that there have been a lot of automotive recalls so far in 2025. We report on them each week. But a new industry report has totaled up the number.

Automakers recalled 8,494,262 vehicles in the U.S. during the third quarter of 2025, according to the BizzyCar Q3 2025 Recall Report a 16% increase from Q2 and the highest total since early 2024. Its the second consecutive quarter of unusually high recall activity, reflecting growing safety risks linked to vehicle complexity.

So far in 2025, more than 19.3 million vehicles have been recalled across the United States.

The sheer volume of recalls this quarter highlights how complex modern vehicles have become, said Ryan Maher, CEO of BizzyCar. Safety-critical systems like brakes, fuel, and electronics must be addressed promptly to prevent accidents.

Not a good year for Ford

Ford Motor Co. was responsible for the lions share of recalls in Q3, with 5,041,241 vehicles affected. The companys campaigns focused on critical safety systems, including brakes, fuel delivery, back-over prevention, and electrical issues.

Across all automakers, the most common defect involved back-over prevention systems, affecting 1.75 million vehicles.

In total, 88% of recalled vehicles posed a crash or injury risk, underscoring the urgency for owners to take immediate action. Regulators and manufacturers also issued three Park Outside advisories covering nearly 201,000 vehicles due to fire or overheating risks.

While Over-the-Air (OTA) updates allow some manufacturers to resolve software-related recalls remotely, the majority of fixes still require a dealership visit. Only 16% of recalled vehicles were eligible for OTA software repairs in Q3.

Dealership inspections remain critical for:

• Uncovering additional or related safety defects

• Ensuring all systems meet federal safety standards

• Providing customer protection and confidence through hands-on service

OTA updates are helpful, but theres no substitute for a technician inspecting the vehicle in person, Maher said. Dealerships are on the front line of keeping drivers safe and building long-term trust.

Why recalls are rising

The surge in recalls underscores the growing complexity of vehicle electronics, software integration, and supply chain pressures. Experts expect recall volumes to remain volatile through 2026, as automakers continue adapting to evolving safety standards and advanced vehicle systems.

Manufacturers that respond quickly and dealerships that communicate clearly with owners will be best positioned to protect drivers while maintaining customer loyalty, the report concludes.

Drivers should take recall notices seriously, even if their vehicle appears to function normally. Owners can check their vehicle identification number (VIN) on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website or contact their dealership to determine if repairs are needed.

Prices are edging closer to $2.99 as oil markets rebound slightly

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• The national average price of gasoline fell 6.4 cents in the past week to $3.02 per gallon, according to GasBuddy data.

• The average is 13.7 cents lower than a month ago and 14.4 cents cheaper than a year ago.

• Diesel prices declined 3.5 cents, bringing the national average to $3.63 per gallon.

For the first time in years, U.S. motorists may soon see the national average gas price dip below $3 per gallon. Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said prices have fallen in most of the country, setting the stage for continued relief at the pump.

Americans appear to be on the cusp of seeing the national average drop below $3 per gallon and potentially stay there for the first time in years, De Haan said in the companys blog. With well over 40 states seeing gas prices decline and oil plunging below $60 per barrel, we could even see a handful of stations in places like Oklahoma, Texas, or even Wisconsin drop below $2 per gallon in the weeks ahead.

De Haan also noted that with wages rising and fuel prices falling, consumers are spending the smallest share of their income on gasoline in years a welcome reprieve after years of volatile energy costs.

Trade tensions and OPEC output

Oil markets were shaken last week after President Trump threatened new tariffs on China in response to restrictions on rare earth exports. The prospect of a renewed trade war sent WTI crude tumbling below $60 per barrel before recovering slightly early Monday to $59.49, down from $61.85 a week earlier. Brent crude traded at $63.32, down from $65.56 last Monday.

UBS commodities analyst Giovanni Staunovo said that ongoing tensions between the worlds two largest economies have weighed on demand expectations. Meanwhile, continued production increases from OPEC+ have added pressure to already soft markets.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administrations latest report, U.S. crude inventories rose by 3.7 million barrels during the week ending October 3, 2025, though levels remain about 4% below seasonal norms. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve increased slightly to 407 million barrels.

Gasoline inventories dropped 1.6 million barrels, about 1% below the five-year seasonal average, while distillate stocks fell 2.0 million barrels. Refinery utilization rose to 92.4%, and gasoline demand jumped by more than 400,000 barrels per day, signaling resilient consumer fuel use even as prices decline.

Gas price trends

The most common pump price across the U.S. is $2.79 per gallon, with the median price at $2.85, roughly 17 cents below the national average.

States leading the nation with the lowest prices include Oklahoma ($2.50), Mississippi ($2.62), and Texas ($2.62). On the high end, California ($4.62), Hawaii ($4.46), and Washington ($4.41) remain the most expensive markets.

The largest weekly drops were seen in Ohio (-18.3), Michigan (-13.9), and Indiana (-13.4), while Texas and Washington also posted double-digit declines.

Researchers tested two coaching models and found that continued contact helps sustain weight loss

• Ongoing support after weight loss is linked to better long-term maintenance.

• A clinical trial tested two phone-based support schedules: fixed monthly calls (static) versus calls triggered by risk signals (adaptive).

• After nearly two years, both groups held onto about 8% of weight loss, and ~60 % of participants kept off at least 5% of their starting weight.

Losing weight is hard but keeping it off over the long haul can be even harder.

Many people regain what theyve shed once the structure of a diet or formal weight-loss program fades. Researchers have long suspected that sustained support might help cement change.

A new study led by Dr. Kathryn Ross and colleagues explores whether continuing phone check-ins can make a real difference, and whether tailoring the timing of support based on risk is better than a steady monthly schedule.

The study

The trial was conducted in two phases. First, over 16 weeks, adults with obesity entered a weight-loss program. Participants who succeeded in losing at least 5 % of their baseline weight qualified for the next maintenance phase.

That maintenance phase lasted 20 more months, during which participants received telephone-based support from trained coaches. But the twist: participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups:

• Static (monthly) group calls scheduled once per month, regardless of how a person was doing.

• Adaptive (triggered) group calls occurred when an algorithm flagged someone as being at higher risk of regaining weight, based on their self-monitoring data (weight logs, diet logs, hunger ratings, etc.).

All participants continued to track weight, diet, and activity through apps and connected scales. Call content was similar across groups: coaches discussed obstacles, goal setting, and problem solving.

The primary question: from the end of the weight-loss phase (month four) to month 24, would the adaptive schedule lead to less weight regain than the fixed monthly schedule?

The results

By the end of the trial, both groups fared better than some prior benchmarks. On average:

• The adaptive group regained 2.8 pounds from month four to 24.

• The static group regained 3.9 pounds in the same period.

• However, the difference between groups was not statistically significant. (

In terms of sustained weight loss:

• Adaptive participants held onto an average of 8.1 % weight loss from baseline.

• Static participants held onto about 7.9 % weight loss.

• Roughly 60 % of participants in both groups maintained at least 5 % loss.
  

The takeaway? The plan of give extra calls when someone seems to be at risk did not outperform a consistent monthly schedule at least in this trial. But the fact that both approaches produced solid long-term maintenance suggests that continued support itself not just when its delivered plays a vital role.

This study is important because it shows that ongoing support really does help people maintain their weight loss over time. Outcomes in both groups were better than we expected, Dr. Ross said in a news release.

Our findings support the provision of long-term care for obesity, under a chronic disease model, just like we do for other long-term health issues. We hope this research encourages more clinics and health programs to offer ongoing support to help people keep the weight off.

How researchers retrofitted streetlight poles to offer low-cost, equitable electric vehicle charging

• A team from Penn State retrofitted 23 streetlights in Kansas City to serve as EV charging stations using a scalable modeling framework.

• Their approach offered lower installation cost, faster charging, and fewer environmental drawbacks than conventional charging stations.

• The model factors in demand, equity, and technical feasibility to guide communities in deploying these streetlamp chargers.

Electric vehicles are growing in popularity, but one hurdle remains: not everyone has a straightforward way to plug in. Apartment dwellers, city residents, and folks without garages often lack access to home chargers.

To bridge that gap, Penn State researchers proposed an inventive idea: Why not turn streetlights already powered and widespread into EV charging stations?

In a pilot project in Kansas City, they tested this idea, aiming to make EV charging more accessible, affordable, and equitable.

The motivation for this work comes from the fact that many apartment and multi-unit dwelling residents, particularly in urban and downtown areas, lack access to dedicated home EV chargers, since they dont have the privilege of owning a garage, researcher Xianbiao XB Hu, said in a news release.

Fortunately, streetlight poles are already powered and typically owned by municipalities, making them relatively easy to work with. Their placement often near on-street parking and in high-traffic areas makes them well-positioned to serve both local residents and visitors.

The study

To make the concept work, the team designed a three-part framework centered on demand, feasibility, and benefits.

1. Demand modeling: The researchers collected data on land use, nearby points of interest, traffic volumes, and station density. They used this data to train artificial intelligence models to predict where EV drivers would most likely need charging.

2. Equity considerations: They deliberately included socio-economic and community engagement factors to ensure that charging benefits would be distributed fairly across neighborhoods, especially those underserved by existing infrastructure.

3. Technical feasibility and benefits analysis: Working in partnership with Kansas City, utility providers, and the National Renewable Energy Lab, they retrofitted 23 streetlight poles to include EV chargers. Over the course of a year, they monitored usage, installation cost, charging speeds, and environmental impacts.
   

This structured method was intended to be scalable meaning other cities could adopt it with adjustment to local data.

The Results: Cost-Effective, faster, and greener

The findings were encouraging. Because the streetlights were already connected to the electrical grid, retrofitting costs were much lower than building new, stand-alone charging stations.

Charging performance was notably strong: the streetlight chargers offered faster charging speeds, likely because each charger drew directly from less congested municipal lines rather than competing with multiple vehicles on a shared circuit.

Environmentally, the system also delivered: the researchers documented gasoline savings and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, mainly by replacing fossil fuel use in locations where vehicles were already parked. In other words, the charging opportunity overlapped with natural parking behavior, making access efficient.

In summary, the project suggests that streetlight-based EV charging is a promising path forward, especially in dense urban settings. The team plans further enhancements, such as integrating socio-economic data and weather conditions, to improve deployment strategies and ensure that charging infrastructure serves those who need it most.

We found that using streetlights for EV charging offers an innovative and equitable approach to expanding charging infrastructure and promoting sustainable electrification, researcher Yuyan Annie Pan said in the news release.