Businessweek Archives  Who Says Safety Isn't Sexy?  BusinessWeek
Lifestyle: Automobiles  Who Says Safety Isn't Sexy?  Cool gizmos
check your tires, watch your back, and more  Despite all the
scary news about Ford Explorers (F) with exploding tires, cars
are definitely safer than they used to be. You can find air
bags, antilock brakes, and side collision rails inside most
late-model cars. And you can be pretty sure that each new model
year will bring further safety improvements. Next year's
offerings, for example, due out this fall, will have an
emergency escape latch with a fluorescent handle inside the
trunk, mostly so kids don't lock themselves in by mistake. By
2004, the government will require that tires automatically
display an alert on the dashboard if they are under- or over-
inflated.  But all those whiz-bang new features won't help the
cars already on the road. So for those of us who don't buy a new
automobile every year, I've rounded up a few simple fixes that
can keep you and your family a little sa