Microheat Inc., the company responsible for inventing and supplying General Motors with their HotSpot windshield cleaning system, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The technology utilized heated liquid to clean the front glass of debris, ice, and snow. Unfortunately, a short circuit on a printed circuit board could overheat and lead to a fire (removing contaminants from much more than just the front windshield). As a result, GM recalled 944,000 vehicles and dropped Microheat, and their HotSpot product, from the lineup.

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2009 BMW X5 Security

If you think that gas prices are high in the U.S., consider that the average price for a gallon of gas in Germany is $9.40. Yikes. Since the record high prices in the States are causing some people to change their lifestyles, imagine how Europeans feel. Bet they're pretty upset, right? One man was ticked off enough to send his 1995 BMW 3 Series out in a blaze of glory. That's right, after parking the Bimmer on the lawn of the Convention Center in Frankfurt, he doused the car in gasoline and torched it in protest of high gasoline prices.

click above for gallery of hot, hot heat

Click above for more pics of the Scion xB post-fire damage

Around 12:30PM EST today, Chrysler's Windsor assembly plant in Canada, which produces an assortment of the automaker's minivans, caught fire after a reported explosion. Eyewitness reports claim that the explosion was followed by large plumes of black smoke emanating from the northwest corner of the center. Fire crews have cordoned off part of the plant around Drouillard Road and all of the employees have been evacuated. We'll update this post with more information as it becomes available, so stay tuned. Thanks for the tip, Alan.

If you drive a Ford product built before 2005, do us all a favor and give your dealership a call. Ask them if your car or truck is one of the 10 million vehicles out there recalled for repair of a cruise control switch.