June 23, 2008
PHOENIX — John McCain hopes to solve the country's energy crisis with cold hard cash, according to the Associated Press.
The Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting is proposing a $300 million government prize to whomever can develop an automobile battery that far surpasses existing technology.
The bounty would equate to $1 for every man, woman and child in the country, "a small price to pay for helping to break the back of our oil dependency," McCain said in remarks prepared for delivery Monday at Fresno State University in California.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth 
at 11:32 AM | Permalink
June 16, 2008
TAKANEZAWA, Japan -- Honda's new zero-emission, hydrogen fuel cell car rolled off a Japanese production line Monday and is headed to Southern California, where Hollywood is already abuzz over the latest splash in green motoring, according to the Associated Press.
The FCX Clarity, which runs on hydrogen and electricity, emits only water and none of the noxious fumes believed to induce global warming. It is also two times more energy efficient than a gas-electric hybrid and three times that of a standard gasoline-powered car, the company says.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:21 AM | Permalink
June 11, 2008
Even as car buyers stampede for vehicles with better fuel mileage, there are fewer hybrids, the gas-stingiest, to go around, according to USA Today.
While sales of conventional small cars soared last month, sales of the most popular gas-electric hybrids were flat or down because dealers had fewer left. There was plenty of demand, but hybrid assembly plants are running as fast as they can, and some are short of components, particularly batteries.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:39 AM | Permalink
May 12, 2008
Rising fuel prices and competition among a proliferation of gasoline-electric hybrids have sliced the payback period for hybrids to two or three years in some cases, instead of five years or more that made hybrids harder to justify at lower fuel prices, according to USA Today.
At the same time, increasing interest in hybrids is driving their prices up and eroding their fuel cost-saving benefits.
An analysis for USA TODAY by auto-price consultant Edmunds.com shows that the difference between a Toyota Camry hybrid and a similarly equipped gasoline Camry was $889 Friday, up from $850 a week ago.
Assuming 15,000 miles a year, Edmunds figures just 1.7 years for the Camry hybrid's fuel savings to offset the car's higher price — slightly longer than 1.6 years when the price difference was less a week earlier.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:33 AM | Permalink
April 28, 2008
Possibily the most sought-after technological innovation since Captain Kirk first flipped open his communicator is the plug-in hybrid, a vehicle that runs first on a battery charged from house current, and then on gasoline, according to The New York Times.
Big car companies have talked about it, but they do not yet sell plug-ins. Beginning this week, a company in the Boston area will be taking orders for what it says is the first mass-produced aftermarket conversion kit. The company, A123 Systems, is starting out with the Toyota Prius, with what it calls a range extender module. The module fits in the well normally occupied by the spare tire, with a charging port installed on the back bumper.
The A123 conversion will allow a Prius driver to substitute electricity, at about 3 cents a mile, for gasoline at three or four times that price. And it would let the United States shift toward the use of coal, wind or sun energy sources instead of imported oil.
One snag: it currently costs about $10,000.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:39 AM | Permalink
April 11, 2008
Mercedes-Benz hasn’t sold a car with a four-cylinder engine in the U.S. for the past few years, but they’re taking this sesquicentennial anniversary of the birth of Rudolf Diesel to introduce a new oil-burner engine, according to thecarconnection.com.
The new diesel, Mercedes says, outstrips all its previous efforts in design, technology and output. A 2.1-liter four-cylinder, the new diesel turns in 204 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque, a boost of 25 percent over its current diesel. Though it has more power, Mercedes says the new engine gets better fuel economy and also spits out less carbon dioxide — 13 percent, according to their estimates.
The 2.1-liter version should be followed by smaller-displacement versions.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:02 AM | Permalink
March 28, 2008
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California regulators have drastically cut the number of zero-emission vehicles required to be sold in the state by the year 2014, a decision that frustrated environmentalists but came as a relief to auto manufacturers, according to the Associated Press.
The rules adopted Thursday put the number of electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles that automakers sell in California at 7,500 by 2014 - a 70 percent reduction from the 2003 target.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 2:55 PM | Permalink
February 5, 2008
TO finish first, race-team crew chiefs remind their impatient young drivers, you must first finish. This is another way of saying that a tortoise could have better odds against a hare than a bettor might otherwise presume, according to The New York Times' Jerry Garrett.
Recently, I pitted the most fuel-efficient new compact car sold in the United States against one of the thirstiest gas guzzlers on American roads. I wanted to see just how much difference there really was — not in the mileage, which anyone can learn by simply reading the window sticker — but in dollars and cents under typical driving conditions.
My decidedly unscientific test consisted of taking a Honda Civic Hybrid on a 300-mile trek, followed by a drive over the same route in a Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera, an Italian exotic with three fewer seats but nearly five times the horsepower.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:42 AM | Permalink
February 4, 2008
DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. will introduce a new hybrid full-size pickup and a concept hybrid truck this week at the Chicago Auto Show, betting that pickup drivers have been itching to jump on the hybrid bandwagon, according to the Associated Press.
GM says the 2009 GMC Sierra hybrid gets a 25 percent improvement in fuel economy without compromising performance, while its GMC Denali XT concept - a low-slung, muscular utility vehicle - gets 50 percent better fuel economy than a comparable small pickup.
The Sierra is the next large GM vehicle to get the company's new two-mode hybrid system, which has also been introduced on the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles and the Chevrolet Silverado pickup. The SUVs are expected to go on sale early this year, while the Silverado and Sierra are scheduled to hit the market at the end of 2008.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:51 AM | Permalink
January 29, 2008
Motorists who modify an old diesel vehicle to run on straight vegetable oil make use of a greasy byproduct of the restaurant industry, reduce demand for petro-fuels and don’t use up materials needed to make a new car, but they get little respect, according to an opinion piece by Jim Kozubek in The Providence Journal.
The Internal Revenue Service gives tax credits to buyers of brand-new hybrid and lean-burning vehicles, but gear-heads who modify their own vehicles to run on straight vegetable oil get no tax credit.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:17 AM | Permalink
January 28, 2008
A small but growing number of toll agencies around the world are giving discounts to owners of some alternative-power vehicles, according to the New York Times.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced last November that it would offer a $2 E-ZPass discount to the owners of three hybrid models, following the example of the New York State Thruway Authority, which introduced 10 percent E-ZPass discounts on those cars in 2006.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:15 AM | Permalink
January 23, 2008
Israel will promote the use of electric cars, embracing a joint venture between an American-Israeli entrepreneur and Renault and its partner, Nissan, according to the New York Times.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, with the active support of President Shimon Peres, intends to make Israel a laboratory to test the practicality of an environmentally clean electric car. The state will offer tax incentives to purchasers, and the new company, with a $200 million investment to start, will begin construction of facilities to recharge the cars and replace empty batteries quickly.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:00 AM | Permalink
January 22, 2008
WASHINGTON — Ford's 2009 Escape gas-electric hybrid will show improvements in power and performance, the automaker said Tuesday, according to USA Today.
Ford was unveiling the 2009 versions of the Escape and its corporate twin, the 2009 Mercury Mariner, at the Washington Auto Show, which opens to the public on Wednesday and lasts through Sunday.
The sport-utility vehicle was one of several hybrid developments at the show. Both Ford and Toyota Motor Corp. were displaying prototype plug-in hybrids while General Motors Corp. was announcing that new orders from three metropolitan transit agencies would more than double its hybrid bus fleet.
Automakers typically show off their fuel-efficient technologies at the Washington show, which is heavily attended by government and political leaders. An energy law signed by President Bush will require the companies to meet an overall fleet average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:05 AM | Permalink
January 18, 2008
Major automakers say they can have plug-in hybrid vehicles in showrooms within five years, offering big increases in fuel economy for what they hope will be modest price premiums, according to USA Today.
Based on results from prototypes, plug-ins appear capable of 50 to 100 miles per gallon on short trips when the vehicles operate mainly on their increased battery power. "If we can't decide within five years whether we can do this, something is wrong," says Greg Frenette, chief engineer for plug-in and fuel-cell vehicles at Ford.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:53 AM | Permalink
January 17, 2008
DETROIT — Toyota Motor, known for gasoline-electric hybrids such as its Prius, says it's branching into other alternative power plants to stay ahead of rivals, according to USA Today.
It will offer low-pollution diesel engines on the Tundra pickup and Sequoia SUV, while doing more research on ethanol, President Katsuaki Watanabe said.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:52 AM | Permalink
December 12, 2007
AS Honda prepares to lease a handful of fuel-cell cars to consumers, General Motors is offering its own hydrogen cars free, according to the New York Times.
G.M. is preparing a January rollout of Project Driveway, which will park more than 100 Equinox Fuel Cell crossover wagons with selected drivers in Westchester County, N.Y.; Orange County, Calif.; and Washington, D.C.
G.M. said the research project would give it the world’s largest fleet of fuel-cell cars driven by consumers, who can apply for no-cost, three-month tests of the Equinox at chevrolet.com/fuelcell. For recipients of the Equinox, each valued at up to $1 million, G.M. will even cover the cost of hydrogen fuel and insurance.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 4:46 PM | Permalink
November 26, 2007
Portland, Ore. - Michael Kadie pressed the accelerator of his electric-powered Cobra replica and took off down the quarter-mile at Portland International Raceway, pulling away from his opponent, a gas-powered Subaru WRX. As he braked, red numbers blinked on in the board that stretched over both lanes: 13.69 seconds at 94 miles an hour. Not bad for a first-ever run in an electric car he built himself.
The run took place at the 10th Anniversary National Electric Drag Racing Association Nationals in August, according to the New York Times.
About 40 people from the West Coast gathered here to watch and participate. Racers competed against each other’s times, though it was usually a gas-powered car in the next lane. (Electric vehicles don’t usually race in the same heat because the silence drains some of the excitement for the spectators.) They were also at the track to swap tips and talk shop about a true 21st-century sport.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:16 AM | Permalink
November 16, 2007
THE annual auto show here, which opened to the public on Friday, is usually a laid-back, colorful affair with an emphasis on the sports cars and convertibles that suit the Southern California lifestyle.
But this year, the accent is on sustainable mobility and the only color that matters is green, according to the New York Times.
If the show is shorter on actual new models than many in the industry had expected, it is long on talk about future models that would be powered by alternative fuels, hybrid drivetrains or both. The boast that most automakers seem to be making to their competitors is, “My green is greener than your green.”
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 1:32 PM | Permalink
November 15, 2007
Tahoe hybrid honored: General Motors' sport-utility vehicle, the Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid, was named "Green Car of the Year" at the show Thursday, according to USA Today.
The Tahoe hybrid is the first model from GM to use a hybrid system the automaker developed jointly with BMW, Daimler's Mercedes-Benz and Chrysler.
"They've proven that they can make beautiful cars, strong cars, keep the size, keep the safety, and all those kinds of things, and at the same time be more fuel efficient," said California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who toured the show after the presentation of the award.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 2:48 PM | Permalink
November 6, 2007
HYBRID cars made immediate headlines nearly a decade ago, when Honda and then Toyota introduced models that offered drivers moon-shot improvements in fuel economy and exhaust emissions.
Today, those leaps of progress are proving tough to repeat: as new technologies develop and gasoline-electric powertrains become available in a wider range of models, the gains over existing hybrids seem more incremental than startling, according to the New York Times.
And even when new twists in technology do arrive — developments that include plug-in hybrids, which can be recharged on household current to give them more driving distance on batteries alone — it may be impossible to give buyers a measure of how much the advances help because there is no test to measure their mileage.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:39 AM | Permalink
November 5, 2007
General Motors says it hopes to begin pumping hundreds of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles a year into ordinary buyers' hands through GM dealerships beginning in 2011, according to USA Today.
Though small numbers by auto-industry standards, it's the most ambitious public plan yet to bring pollution-free fuel-cell vehicles into the mainstream.
Perhaps more important, GM is "working as hard and fast as we can for competitive reasons," rather than as pure research on a promising technology, says Larry Burns, GM vice president in charge of research and development.
"I'm paranoid enough to conclude (rivals) are running on the same timeline we are," he says, citing fuel-cell research at Mercedes-Benz, Honda and others.
In other words, a race is on, and that always speeds development.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:57 AM | Permalink
November 2, 2007
Fisker Automotive, the latest Palo Alto, California-based venture from Henrik Fisker, the Danish founder of Fisker Coachbuild, that has dubbed itself the 'green American premium car company,' has released a first image and some cursory information about its upcoming plug-in hybrid sports sedan, according to thecarconnection.com
The car will make its debut at this next January's North American International Auto Show in Detroit and go on sale in late 2009 starting at $80,000.
Unlike Fisker Coachbuild products, which are built on existing Mercedes-Benz and BMW models, the new sedan will employ a platform that's all-new from the ground up, according to the automaker, with testing and development done in conjunction with Quantum Technologies, an Irvine, California company that has worked with Toyota, GM, and NASA.
The sedan will be a true plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle (PHEV), meaning that it will be able to travel respectable commuting distances on electric power alone, but use the gasoline engine to recharge the system, and both gasoline and electric components for longer-distance driving.
Fisker says that it will be able to go about 50 miles on a single electric charge, and the system will be mated with a gasoline or diesel engine to achieve a range of up to 620 miles. The actual miles-per-gallon figure will be around 100, they say.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 7:06 AM | Permalink
October 30, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO — Shai Agassi, a Silicon Valley technologist who was in competition to become chief executive of SAP, one of the world’s largest software companies, has re-emerged with a grand plan to reinvent the world’s automobile industry around battery-powered all-electric cars, according to the New York Times.
Others are developing green cars, like the Tesla and Chevrolet Volt. However, Mr. Agassi is not planning to make cars, but instead wants to deploy an infrastructure of battery-charging stations in the United States, Europe and the developing world.
The new system will sell electric fuel on a subscription basis and will subsidize vehicle costs through leases and credits.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:52 AM | Permalink
WHITE MARSH, Md. -- It's just a transmission -- a chunk of cast metal and plastic found in every car and truck that most owners never think about unless it breaks.
But for General Motors Corp., the first transmission off the line Monday for its new hybrid system marks its most aggressive attempt to fight Toyota's hybrid juggernaut, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The parts built at a plant outside of Baltimore will be bolted into GM's full-size SUVs hitting dealerships in the next several weeks and into some pickups next year. The SUVs will match the city fuel economy figures of a gasoline-powered Toyota Camry sedan.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:50 AM | Permalink
Pressing the red "Start" button, the Mazda RX-8 fires up, the pint-sized rotary engine under its hood buzzing as I modulate the throttle, shift into gear and launch down the test track at Mazda'sHiroshima headquarters, writes thecarconnection.com's Paul Eisenstein.
Acceleration is a little slower than I'm used to, but that's the trade-off signaled by the glowing "H2" light on the sports car's instrument panel. This prototype version of the rotary-powered RX-8 has been converted to run on hydrogen, the lightweight gas that many experts believe will be the fuel of the future.
Like most of its competitors, Mazda has come to recognize the long-term need to find alternatives to conventional gasoline. And like the rest of the industry, it is toying with a variety of options, including both electric and gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles. But the Japanese maker is placing its big bet on hydrogen, a fuel it has been tinkering with for two decades, in a series of prototypes and now, in a small fleet of vehicles, like this RX-8, undergoing real-world testing.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:38 AM | Permalink
October 29, 2007
Check out this fasincating Associated Press interview with Takeshi Uchiyamada, the Toyota engineer who masterminded the iconic Prius under tremendous pressure from management to "come up with the 21st century car, the vehicle that would hands-down beat the competition in mileage and environmental friendliness."
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 4:01 PM | Permalink
BEIJING -- General Motors Corp. said Monday it will set up a $250 million alternative-fuel research center in Shanghai amid efforts by global automakers to produce commercially viable alternatives to gasoline engines, according to the Associated Press.Global automakers are stepping up research into fuel cells, biofuels, diesel and other power sources amid rising demand from governments and consumers for cleaner transportation and an alternative to expensive oil.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:55 AM | Permalink
October 24, 2007
TOCHIGI, Japan — Honda will deliver fewer than 100 of its new fuel-cell cars next year, when it's scheduled for introduction in the United States, the automaker's top executive said yesterday at the company's research and development headquarters here, according to USA Today.
Though a small number, it is several times as many FCX hydrogen fuel-cell sedans as the automaker currently has on U.S. roads. Only two of those are in the hands of individuals and about 20 more are in fleet service by governments and other institutions.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:10 AM | Permalink
October 5, 2007
Don't denigrate federal subsidies just because they can lead to market imbalances.
Unfortunately, that certainly seems to have happened with President Bush's initiative to boost ethanol production.
Demand for corn has gone up leading to higher prices, but limited outlets for selling ethanol - or the E85 blend - has resulted in a glut of ethanol and lower prices, according to last Sunday's New York Times.
And that is leading to cutbacks in industry plans and a probable consolidation with smaller players dropping by the wayside, according to the NYT.
Sure, the Senate Finance Committee just approved a tax bill that includes lowering the tax credit for ethanol by 5 cents to 46 cents a gallon when production exceeds 7.5 billion gallons a year which is expected by the end of this year. But it also extended a 54-cent-a-gallon tariff on ethanol imports until 2011.
It may be anathma to neocons like Bush et al, but the federal subsidy program reflects a crude form of the mixed market economics that has been so successful in Japan and other nations.
Maybe if Bush had just offered tax credits, the results would not have been so extreme. But he added protectionist tariffs, resulting in a massive buck a gallon advantage to domestic suppliers.
And prompted by that incentive, ethanol production has gotten out of hand. I mean, consider this simple fact from the NYT: Only about 1,000 pumps at the nation’s 179,000 gasoline stations offer gasoline blended with ethanol. That's "pumps" at "stations."
And none of them are in New England.
- Peter C. T. Elsworth
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:18 AM | Permalink
October 1, 2007
BALTIMORE -- Gas-electric hybrid vehicles, the status symbol for the environmentally conscientious, are coming under attack from a constituency that doesn't drive: the blind, according to the Associated Press.
Because hybrids make virtually no noise at slower speeds when they run solely on electric power, blind people say they pose a hazard to those who rely on their ears to determine whether it's safe to cross the street or walk through a parking lot.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 12:02 PM | Permalink
General Motors plans to manufacture the Chevrolet Volt electric car in 2010 and will produce a Chevy version of its full-size crossover SUVs in 2011, according to a summary of the automaker's new contract with the United Auto Workers, according to USA Today.
It will also add wagon and coupe versions of the newly redesigned Cadillac CTS sports sedan in 2009.
The rare peek at GM's product plans is part of the four-year labor agreement between GM and the UAW.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:06 AM | Permalink
TOKYO — Toyota has unveiled an upgraded fuel-cell vehicle that successfully completed a test run, proving its ability to run a longer distance than its existing model, a move to take a lead in the future power-train technology race, according to the USA Today.
The latest model has gone 480 miles on a single fueling, more than double the mileage achieved by Toyota's existing model, the company said in a statement.
Toyota has been in a race with global automakers, including General Motors, to develop non-gas-emission vehicles. A major challenge in developing fuel-cell vehicles is their limited driving distance .
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:47 AM | Permalink
September 27, 2007
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. John Dingell says his proposed plan for curbing greenhouse gases through higher taxes will likely include a "cap and trade" system for controlling carbon dioxide favored by several other lawmakers, and could give Detroit automakers an opening to sell more diesel-powered vehicles, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The Dearborn Democrat unveiled a draft outline of his proposal on his Web site today calling for a 50-cent-per-gallon increase in gasoline taxes and a $50-per-ton levy on carbon emissions from fossil fuels.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 3:29 PM | Permalink
September 26, 2007
Interested in an energy-efficient auto? You're in luck. That's because nearly every major car company has a hybrid line, or has plans to introduce one soon.
But enter the showroom, and instead of seeing green, you may be seeing red. Many of the market's hybrids--cars which combine gasoline engines with battery-powered electric motors--forsake fuel-efficiency in the name of power and performance, according to Forbes.com
The average gas mileage of hybrid models available in the U.S. is 33 miles per gallon (combined city and highway). But Chevy's newest Silverado hybrid truck gets only 16 mpg. The newest Lexus LS 600h L hybrid sedan clocks in at 21 mpg, the 2007 Saturn Vue hybrid at 26 mpg.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 8:09 AM | Permalink
September 24, 2007
Get these tax credits while they last.
In August, Honda sold its 60,000th hybrid vehicle. That means the clock has started ticking on the phase-out, and eventual end, of credits for people who buy a Honda hybrid, according to the New York Times. Hybrid tax credits were part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
The 2007 Accord Hybrid qualifies for a $1,300 credit and the Civic Hybrid for $2,100. (Some earlier models still qualify technically for the credit, but it’s only for the vehicle’s original owner; credits are not available for pre-owned cars.)
However, the Energy Policy Act sets a limit on the number of hybrids eligible. Once an automaker sells its 60,000th hybrid (all hybrid models combined), the tax credit begins to fade.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 4:39 PM | Permalink
Get these tax credits while they last.
In August, Honda sold its 60,000th hybrid vehicle. That means the clock has started ticking on the phase-out, and eventual end, of credits for people who buy a Honda hybrid, according to the New York Times. Hybrid tax credits were part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
The 2007 Accord Hybrid qualifies for a $1,300 credit and the Civic Hybrid for $2,100. (Some earlier models still qualify technically for the credit, but it’s only for the vehicle’s original owner; credits are not available for pre-owned cars.)
However, the Energy Policy Act sets a limit on the number of hybrids eligible. Once an automaker sells its 60,000th hybrid (all hybrid models combined), the tax credit begins to fade.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 4:39 PM | Permalink
September 20, 2007
I read a quote the other day that went something along the lines of "When the facts change, I change my opinion."
Well, the facts about global warming have been changing for some time and it seems to me the message is finally getting through. I mean, when the senior advisor on the environment to this petro-driven administration concurs that CO2 emissions are changing the climate, you know opinions are changing.
And I expect a sea change next year in interest in cars and trucks powered by alternative fuels, mainly clean diesel from Europe and gas/diesel-electric hybrids from Asia and Detroit.
Folks, it's going to happen very fast indeed. Remember when we all smoked and no party or bar was complete without the fug of cigarette smoke. No more. Gone. Heck, I went to university in France in the late 1960s and developed a taste for the deliciously pungent Gauloise cigarettes. There were practically national brands and now they are not even made in France any more!
Plus ca change, plus ca change.
And the word at the current auto show in Frankfurt - one of Europe's biggest - is alternative fuels. This on the cusp of the entrance of the big clean diesels from Germany into the North American market (starting next year).
I have enormous respect for the intelligence and common sense of the average Joe, and the facts of global warming are getting through to all of us. What was once trendy is now becoming a fact of life and most of us now want to do our bit to save ourselves from ourselves.
Buying cars that emit less CO2 makes more than good sense: increasingly, there is little alternative that makes any sense.
- Peter C. T. Elsworth
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:39 AM | Permalink
September 19, 2007
Everybody is working on new ways to improve fuel economy and to go green. That's the news out of theFrankfurt auto show.
But if you take it a step further, it likely means that the most radical potential change in the automobile world - a move to hydrogen-powered vehicles - will likely go on hold, according to thecarconnection.com
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:37 AM | Permalink
September 18, 2007
Washington, DC – Newly released sales figures from R.L. Polk reveal that an increased number of alternative fuel automobiles rolled off dealer lots in the second quarter of 2007.
Between April and June of this year, nearly 490,000 AFAs were sold nationwide, an increase of 27 percent over the same period last year, bringing the total number of AFAs to nearly 11.5 million on American roads.
Sales of E-85 capable vehicles were up almost two percent from 266,859 from the first quarter of 2007 to 272,109, while sales of hybrid vehicles showed a significant increase, up about 48 percent from 74,056 to 109,716. Sales of clean diesel vehicles also grew from 93,012 to 108,044—more than a 16 percent increase.
“We are seeing the trend in increased sales of AFAs not only in comparison to the first quarter of 2007, but also in comparison to the first two quarters of 2006. The 2007 second quarter sales figures show an increase of 31 percent in sales of AFAs over the first half of 2006.
Higher gas prices and an increasing availability of a variety of models of AFAs for sale are likely drivers of this upward trend,” said Dave McCurdy, president and CEO of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. “Yet, even though more AFAs are being sold, we still need more gas stations to offer biofuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel.”
Sixty models of AFAs are currently available and more are in development, including hybrid-electric, clean diesel, ethanol capable and others. Advanced vehicles need advanced fuels, including ultra low sulfur diesel, E85 ethanol, bio-diesel, hydrogen and electricity, all of which will play increasingly important roles as AFA sales continue to increase.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:06 AM | Permalink
FRANKFURT - Suddenly, alternative auto power seems close, according to USA Today.
The big Frankfurt auto show in Germany, home of the speed-limitless autobahn, bristles with vehicles aimed more at saving petroleum than gulping it. Here in the USA, General Motors (GM) is about to put the largest hydrogen fuel-cell test fleet into consumer hands, and Honda (HMC) is gearing up to launch fuel-cell, diesel and hybrid models.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:04 AM | Permalink
September 14, 2007
FRANKFURT - When it comes to this year's Frankfurt Motor Show, UP! is down, according to thecarconnection.com
Downsized that is, in the form of Volkswagen's pint-sized prototype car. Dubbed the UP!, it makes the automaker's original Beetle look positively huge. For the moment, the UP! is little more than a concept vehicle, but you likely won't have to wait very long to see it - or one of several variants the German maker will reveal later this year - go into production.
The same is true for a trio of minicar concepts revealed by General Motors, during its time in the Frankfurt spotlight. The American giant hopes to gauge reaction at this and several other major world auto shows to see if there's enough demand to justify production
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 1:23 PM | Permalink
September 13, 2007
FRANKFURT, Germany — Two decades after diesel cars all but vanished from American roads in a cloud of sooty smoke, are Americans ready to give them another try?
That is a big question at the Frankfurt Motor Show this week, as European carmakers roll out “clean diesel” vehicles — their answer to the call for more efficient, climate-friendly cars, according to the New York Times.
Betting that diesel power will become an alternative to the hybrids popularized by Toyota and other Japanese carmakers, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Volkswagen all plan to sell new diesel automobiles in the United States in the coming year, and many of them are on show here
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:12 AM | Permalink
FRANKFURT, Germany -- Saturn will put General Motors Corp.'s first plug-in hybrid -- a Vue compact SUV that can run up to 10 miles solely on electricity and switch to an engine for longer trips -- on the road "very quickly," brand general manager Jill Lajdziak said Wednesday, according to the Detroit Free Press.
"In 2009-ish," Lajdziak said.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:06 AM | Permalink
September 12, 2007
European automakers, stung by criticisms from environmentalists and government regulators that they are late to the green party, will be using the 2007 Frankfurt motor show to showcase everything in their alternative fuel and powertrain arsenals, according to the New York Times.
The biennial show, the 62nd Internationalen Automobil-Ausstellungen Cars, will be held at the mammoth CongressCenter Messe Frankfurt convention center from Thursday through Sept. 23.
Press preview days began Monday night and continue through Wednesday. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, will open the show to the public on Thursday.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:13 AM | Permalink
September 11, 2007
FRANKFURT, Germany - General Motors will begin testing the revolutionary electric drive system in the Chevrolet Volt concept car on the road in vehicles next spring, company Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said at a dinner Monday night, according to the Detroit Free Press.
By this time next year, GM may allow selected people outside the company to test the system.
GM is committed to putting the system in the Chevrolet Volt for sale by 2010, Lutz said.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:59 AM | Permalink
September 4, 2007
AUSTIN, Texas — Millions of inventions pass quietly through the U.S. patent office each year. Patent No. 7,033,406 did, too, until energy insiders spotted six words in the filing that sounded like a death knell for the internal combustion engine.
An Austin-based start-up called EEStor promised "technologies for replacement of electrochemical batteries," meaning a motorist could plug in a car for five minutes and drive 500 miles roundtrip without gasoline, according to USA Today.
By contrast, some plug-in hybrids on the horizon would require motorists to charge their cars in a wall outlet overnight and promise only 50 miles of gasoline-free commute. And the popular gas-electric hybrids on the road today still depend heavily on fossil fuels.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:12 AM | Permalink
August 24, 2007
The alternative-fuel revolution is driving prices of another energy-producing crop to near-record levels, according to USA Today.
Soybean prices are expected to hit their second-highest average mark ever this year — and highest since 1983, says the Agriculture Department. Soybeans are used to make biodiesel fuel.
Production of biodiesel, a renewable alternative to diesel fuel, has increased more than 1,200% in the past three years, showing how the nation's truckers are being drawn into the alternative-fuels frenzy along with the auto industry.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:30 AM | Permalink
August 21, 2007
Last February, a group of Ford engineers set out to prove that an electric car powered by hydrogen could top 200 m.p.h. Last week, those engineers proved it, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The Ford Fusion Hydrogen 999 fuel cell car hit 207.297 m.p.h. at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on Thursday and set a world record in the process. It is the world's first and only production-based fuel cell racecar.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 12:10 PM | Permalink
August 16, 2007
It could be the future of cruising, a muscle car for the 21st Century: A Chevrolet Camaro that could approach 40 m.p.g. on the highway and 30 m.p.g. in the city, according to the Detroit Free Press's Mark Phelan.
It might glide silently through future Woodward Dream Cruises, running on battery power up to 25 m.p.h. but with a beefy V8 engine poised to leap to life for a 0-60 sprint.
This Camaro, wedding Chevrolet's legendary small-block V8 engine to General Motors' advanced new hybrid system, isn't on the drawing board yet, but it is feasible, a knowledgeable GM source told the Free Press. GM has the parts on the shelf to get this dream car cruising. It would combine production-ready hybrid technology that hits the road this fall in some GM vehicles with the celebrated new Camaro that is to go on sale in early 2009.
"The Camaro is Chevrolet and GM's halo car," said Joe Phillippi, principal of AutoTrends Consulting, in Short Hills, N.J. "It projects an image that reflects on the whole corporation. To offer all the performance aspects of a classic Camaro and still be environmentally friendly ... that's a real plus from an image point of view.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:00 AM | Permalink
August 14, 2007
Two years ago, a group of Ohio State University students asked Ford Motor Co. if it was interested in building a hydrogen-fueled race car. On Sunday, the result of that proposal made history, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The Ford Fusion 999, a hydrogen- and electric-powered car designed to whip across the salty white desert during Bonneville Speed Week, zoomed across the infinite horizon at 161 m.p.h. It was the first time a hydrogen-powered car had ever competed at the salt flats, where all manner of modified, souped-up vehicles come every August to break land-speed records.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:21 AM | Permalink
If you're considering an end-of-summer vacation, go ahead and unfurl your road maps.
The average price of a gallon of regular gas this week is $2.77, down nearly 23 cents from this time last summer, according to the Energy Information Administration and reported by USA Today columnist Sandra Block.
Oil analysts warn, however, that a major hurricane or refinery breakdown could send gas prices sharply higher. In addition, the recent bridge collapse in Minneapolis has prompted some lawmakers to propose raising the federal gas tax to pay for bridge repairs. (President Bush said he opposes the idea.)
And if you're counting on the tax credit to reduce the cost of buying a hybrid, pay attention to the calendar. The tax credit begins to phase out after an automaker sells 60,000 vehicles.
Once a manufacturer's sales hit the limit, buyers are eligible for the full credit until the end of the quarter in which the threshold was reached and through the next quarter. Then they're eligible for half the credit for six months. For the next six months, the credit will shrink to 25% of the full amount, then it will disappear.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 10:01 AM | Permalink
General Motors has signed an agreement with a battery maker that could propel it ahead of Toyota in the race to bring plug-in hybrid and electric cars to market, a top company official said Thursday, according to USA Today.
A123 Systems, based in Watertown, Mass., already produces thousands of nanophosphate lithium-ion batteries for use in cordless power tools, and it plans to apply the technology to automobiles.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:58 AM | Permalink
August 9, 2007
Automakers are putting a new emphasis on cars and trucks that excel at cutting carbon-dioxide emissions to reduce global warming, according to USA Today.
In the past, CO2 was treated as just a component of the noxious vapors spewing from tailpipes. Now, it's being singled out.
"Thanks to (former vice president) Al Gore, people are becoming aware of this extra factor," says Dominick Infante, spokesman for Subaru, which is looking to reduce its CO2 footprint. "It's becoming something people are wondering about."
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 9:09 AM | Permalink
August 7, 2007
Hybrid vehicles are on track to reach record sales this year, an auto information company said Thursday, according to USA Today.
An estimated 187,000 hybrids were sold in the first six months of 2007, accounting for 2.3% of all new vehicle sales, according to J.D. Power and Associates. Although a sales slowdown is expected in the second half of the year, J.D. Power is forecasting total sales of 345,000 hybrids for the year, a 35% increase from 2006 when the current record of 256,000 hybrids were sold.
The Toyota (TM) Prius continues to be the best-selling hybrid model, accounting for just more than half of all hybrids sold. J.D. Power said Prius sales also got a boost this year from incentives of up to $2,000 per vehicle, which helped offset a decrease in federal tax breaks for hybrids.
Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth at 11:54 AM | Permalink
July 30, 2007
Straddling a 619-pound motorcycle, Scotty Pollacheck tucks in his knees and lowers his head as he waits for the green light. When he revs the engine, there's no roar. The bike moves so fast that within seconds all that's visible is a faint red taillight melting in the distance.
Pollacheck crosses the quarter-mile marker doing 156 mph; he's traveled 1,320 feet in 8.22 seconds, faster than any of the gas-powered cars, trucks or motorcycles that have raced in the drag sprints on this weekend at Portland International Raceway.
It's particularly impressive given Pollacheck is riding a vehicle that uses no gasoline and is powered entirely by lithium-ion batteries, according to the Associated Press.
Posted by at 10:28 AM | Permalink
July 27, 2007
The tyres are made of potatoes and the brake pads from ground cashew shells. The body was created from hemp and rapeseed oil, and it runs on fuel made from fermented wheat and sugar beet.
Yet despite the greenest of credentials, this mean machine is capable of a highly-impressive 150mph.
The one-seater racing car - called Eco One - has been built by experts from Warwick University to dispel the perception that 'green' motoring means dull little electric runarounds or filling your fuel tank with chip fat, according to the Daily Mail of Britain.
Posted by at 2:02 PM | Permalink
July 25, 2007
Toyota already dominates the hybrid market with more than a million of the vehicles sold over the past decade.
Now, it has developed a new type of hybrid that plugs into a home electrical socket for a longer ride as an electric car, raising the stakes in the race to develop more energy efficient, according to USA Today.
Posted by at 12:45 PM | Permalink
General Motors says it now expects 40% better fuel economy in city driving from the gasoline-electric hybrid versions of its full-size SUVs than their gasoline-only counterparts, giving the hybrid Chevrolet Tahoes and GMC Yukons 19 or 20 miles a gallon in stop-and-go driving, according to USA Today.
That's up from earlier forecasts of a 25% improvement and would give the big SUVs better mileage than some mid- and full-size, gasoline-power family sedans. It also would be better than so-called crossover SUVs that are stealing sales from truck-based SUVs such as Tahoe because crossovers typically use less fuel.
Posted by at 12:41 PM | Permalink
July 17, 2007
The world's first rechargeable plug-in motorcycle, called the Enertia, will be available next year, according to a press release last week from its Oregon-based maker, according to thecarconnection.com
The Enertia is the first in a new series of electric commuter, commercial, and recreational vehicles from Brammo Motorsports, a privately held company based in Ashland , Ore. It's the same company that makes the minimalist Ariel Atom sports car, which has found a niche following among the enthusiast crowd; but the Enertia looks to be a no-brainer for the environmentalist set, especially those who can't quite stomach the $100,000 price tag for Tesla Motors' Roadster.
To that end, the Enertia has more than eight times the wheel-to-well efficiency of a CAFE-average car and more than four times that of a typical motorcycle, according to Brammo.
Posted by at 9:39 AM | Permalink
Automakers are facing yet another indication of a sea change in vehicle emissions regulation, with Florida poised to adopt California 's 2009 emissions regulations, according to thecarconnection.com.
The adoption would make Florida the first state in the Southeast - and the thirteenth overall - to join the more stringent California regulations, aiming to bring a 25-percent cut in vehicle greenhouse gas emissions versus the current federal standard.
Florida , the nation's fourth most populous state, has more cars per capita than any other. What's more, the Sunshine State is also ahead of the national average, per capita, in new-car purchases. So the matter is expected to meet some heavy resistance from automakers.
Posted by at 9:37 AM | Permalink
July 16, 2007
When Christopher Paine, the director of “Who Killed the Electric Car?” filmed the General Motors EV1, he had to search for a flattering perspective, according to the New York Times.
“When we filmed the car on the road, its best angle was the low front shot from the side,” he said. “It was gorgeous. The back of the car was more challenging. The car’s style did not appeal to certain design sensibilities
Posted by at 10:43 AM | Permalink
Clever and attractive, the Chevrolet Volt, a design study for a new wrinkle in electric cars, dominated the headlines coming from the Detroit auto show in January. But the introduction was punctuated with an asterisk, according to the New York Times.
The car that promised a fuel economy equivalent of 150 miles a gallon and a total range of 640 miles using its onboard recharging system carried a major caveat: the lithium-ion batteries required to make it a reality are not yet available, and won’t be until 2010 at the earliest, industry experts say.
Posted by at 10:31 AM | Permalink
July 13, 2007
Sen. Barack Obama got new wheels since he last visited the Motor City, but still rides between a rock and a hard place, according to the Detroit Free Press.
He lectured Detroit automakers about their having failed to anticipate the effect rising oil prices would have on consumer buying habits in a May 7 speech to the Detroit Economic Club. Then, after he got an earful in return when it was revealed his car was a Hemi-powered Chrysler 300 that got 25 m.p.g. on a good day -- the senator from Illinois went green, switching to a hybrid.
In fact, he got a Ford Escape hybrid SUV, according to campaign officials. That was before Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford Jr. blasted Obama in early June on Mackinac Island. There have been no reports that Ford's criticism has prompted Obama to turn it in.
Posted by at 11:54 AM | Permalink
A debate over the survival of Detroit's automakers broke out during a congressional hearing Thursday on the future of plug-in hybrid vehicles, as advocates pressed for more action and a Detroit defender warned the industry was on the brink of collapse, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The hearing was a mix of sympathy, castigation and bluster that has become typical of any debate about the auto industry on Capitol Hill. While General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler are building prototype plug-in hybrid vehicles, none was invited to the hearing of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.
Posted by at 11:51 AM | Permalink
July 11, 2007
The relatively quick-and-easy answer to foreign oil dependence and automotive greenhouse gas emissions is circling the grounds every day at Orlando International Airport in Florida, according to a top Ford official, USA Today reports.
It's a utilitarian 12-passenger parking lot shuttle bus powered by a 6.8-liter internal combustion hydrogen engine, which Ford officials said is their hydrogen technology closest to mass production.
Posted by at 3:29 PM | Permalink
July 10, 2007
Ford and Southern California Edison will team up to test rechargeable hybrid vehicles and hasten mass production of the new technology, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The California utility, which serves 13 million people in 11 central, coastal and southern California counties outside Los Angeles, will get a Ford plug-in hybrid vehicle by the end of this year and as many as 20 by some time in 2009 to test durability, range and impact on the power grid, said Susan M. Cischke, Ford senior vice president for sustainability, environment and safety engineering.
Posted by at 10:57 AM | Permalink
July 5, 2007
A riddle: Why has the Toyota Prius enjoyed such success, with sales of more than 400,000 in the United States, when most other hybrid models struggle to find buyers?
One answer may be that buyers of the Prius want everyone to know they are driving a hybrid, according to the New York Times
The Prius, after all, was built from the ground up as a hybrid, and is sold only as a hybrid. By contrast, the main way to tell that a Honda Civic, Ford Escape or Saturn Vue is a hybrid version is a small badge on the trunk or side panel.
Posted by at 2:46 PM | Permalink
July 2, 2007
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2007-06-27-nissan-batteries_N.htmNissan CEO Carlos Ghosn said Wednesday his company is working hard to develop the next generation of smaller, lighter auto batteries — a technology that holds promise for electric cars as well as for hybrids, according to USA Today.
He also said Nissan and its French partner Renault are moving ahead with studies on a $3,000 car for the Indian market.
Posted by at 11:21 AM | Permalink
June 27, 2007
Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn says his company is working hard to develop the next generation of smaller, lighter auto batteries - a technology that holds promise for electric cars as well as for hybrids, AP reports.
He also said Nissan and its French partner Renault SA are moving ahead with studies on a $3,000 car for the Indian market.
Posted by at 9:51 AM | Permalink
June 21, 2007
With higher government fuel economy requirements looming and gasoline prices around $3 a gallon, Chrysler Group on Thursday announced several measures to boost the fuel mileage of its cars and trucks, according to USA Today.
During an event to showcase its 2008 models, the company said its new family of V-6 engines will have the ability to drop to three cylinders when less power is needed, raising V-6 fuel economy 6% to 8%.
The company also plans to place its new two-mode hybrid powertrain in more vehicles, put a clean diesel engine in the 2009 Jeep Cherokee sport-utility vehicle, and upgrade its 5.7-liter Hemi and 4.7-liter V-8 engines to get better gas mileage.
Posted by at 12:13 PM | Permalink
June 19, 2007
Internet search giant Google hopes to speed the development of plug-in hybrid cars by giving away millions of dollars to people and companies that have what appear to be practical ways to get plug-ins to market faster, according to USA Today.
But the money, announced Monday afternoon at Google headquarters in Mountain Valley, Calif., totals just $1 million so far with another $10 million pledged, which might not be enough to move the needle.
Auto development is crushingly expensive, especially when it involves the kind of advanced battery and powertrain technology used in plug-in hybrids.
Though automakers are tight-lipped about what they spend, bringing a plug-in hybrid to market could cost
Posted by at 2:33 PM | Permalink
June 15, 2007
The increased demand for "green" vehicles is spilling over to the rental car counter, where many more drivers will soon be able to choose a hybrid vehicle, according to the Associated Press.
Hertz said it will spend $68 million to add 3,400 Toyota Prius hybrids to its fleets by 2008. And Avis said this week it plans to make 1,000 hybrid Prius vehicles available for rent as early as next week.
Posted by at 1:12 PM | Permalink
June 13, 2007
BioFuel Energy Corp., a development-stage ethanol producer, said it plans to sell 5.25 million shares at $10.50 a share in an initial public offering, below its expected IPO pricing range of $13 to $14 a share, according to Reuters.
In a regulatory filing, BioFuel said it will also sell 4.25 million shares in a private placement directly to affiliates of Greenlight Capital Inc., Third Point LLC and its chairman, Thomas Edelman.
The Denver, Colorado-based company expects to receive about $93 million in net proceeds, after deducting underwriting discounts and offering expenses.
BioFuel plans to use the net proceeds to fund the equity portion of the construction costs of its Alta plant and repay or defer debt.
Posted by at 10:12 AM | Permalink
It's the end of the driving world as you know it, some of the automotive industry's top engineers and executives said Tuesday during a University of Michigan forum on alternative-fuel vehicles, according to the Detroit Free Press.
More than 700 people filled the Power Center in Ann Arbor to hear hybrid and advanced technology directors from General Motors Corp., Toyota Motor Corp. and Ford Motor Co. discuss what their companies are doing to address increasing consumer demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Posted by at 9:55 AM | Permalink
June 12, 2007
After taking a decade to sell its first 1 million gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles worldwide, Toyota now says it plans to sell 1 million a year within a few years, according to USA Today.
At the same time, the big automaker appears to be backing away from a pledge made a few years ago that hybrid powertrains would be available as options on nearly every one of its U.S. vehicles by 2010.
Posted by at 10:30 AM | Permalink
June 8, 2007
A decade after the first Prius went on sale, Toyota's global sales of hybrid vehicles have hit 1 million, underlining the Japanese automaker's lead in "green" technology, according to USA Today.
Toyota says it has sold 577,311 gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles in the USA from mid-2000, when it launched the Prius here, through May.
Toyota's worldwide sales of gas-and-electric-powered vehicles totaled 1.047 million as of the end of May. Nearly 345,000 of those were sold in Japan.
Posted by at 12:53 PM | Permalink
June 6, 2007
General Motors has awarded two contracts to companies that will help speed up development of its plug-in hybrid car called the Chevrolet Volt, GM Chairman Rick Wagoner said Tuesday, according to USA Today.
Wagoner, speaking at the company's annual shareholders meeting, also said GM would introduce four new hybrid models this year.
Posted by at 9:48 AM | Permalink
June 5, 2007
Honda says it will discontinue the hybrid version of its Accord sedans, according to USA Today.
Honda will continue to make gas-and-electric models of its Civic sedan, but stop offering the hybrid Accord with the new model expected to go on sale later this year, company spokesman Yoshiyuki Kuroda said in Tokyo.
The Accord hybrid, sold only in North America, was a dud, selling just 25,000 since going on sale in 2004. It sold just 6,100 last year.
Posted by at 9:20 AM | Permalink
May 23, 2007
The city's yellow taxi fleet will go entirely hybrid within five years, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced yesterday, according to USA Today.
"There's an awful lot of taxicabs on the streets of New York City," Bloomberg said. "These cars just sit there in traffic sometimes, belching fumes.
Nearly 400 fuel-efficient hybrids have been tested in the city's taxi fleet over the past 18 months, with models including the Toyota Prius, the Toyota Highlander Hybrid, the Lexus RX 400h and the Ford Escape.
Posted by at 12:07 PM | Permalink
May 21, 2007
Speaking at a taping of “Wait Wait ...Don’t Tell Me!” the quiz program on National Public Radio, Robert A. Lutz, vice chairman at General Motors, declared Thursday night that the Chevrolet Volt, the hybrid-electric concept car that G.M. unveiled at this year’s Detroit auto show, may be among the most important vehicles that G.M. has ever developed, The New York Times reports.
Lutz has long been considered one of Detroit’s ultimate “car guys,” for whom no vehicle could be big enough, powerful enough or fast enough. He is the father of the V-10 Dodge Viper and has championed automobiles like the 1,000-horsepower Cadillac Sixteen.
Lutz said he was more excited about the Volt that he was about the Dodge Viper. “I think this can bring about the revolution and really make us independent of foreign oil and solve all the other problems," he said.
Posted by at 10:03 AM | Permalink
May 17, 2007
Toyota's commitment to hybrid automobiles was on full display today when it unveiled in Tokyo its most expensive gasoline-electric vehicle yet - the $124,000 luxury Lexus LS sedan, according to the Associated Press.
Executives at Japan's No. 1 automaker are fully convinced that hybrid cars are the way of the future. And they're betting that growing consumer concern about the environment - and higher gas prices - will lure even wealthy buyers to the new model, which went on sale Thursday in Japan and will arrive later elsewhere.
Posted by at 9:44 AM | Permalink
May 16, 2007
General Motors claims to have the first electrically driven fuel-cell vehicle capable of going 300 miles on a single tank of hydrogen - on public roads, according to thecarconnection.com.
Sequel's 300-mile route acrossNew York State began at GM's Fuel Cell Activity Center in Honeoye Falls, near Rochester, and finished in Tarrytown, just north of New York City, where a GM assembly facility was closed more than a decade ago.
Posted by at 10:35 AM | Permalink
May 11, 2007
Honda says it will put a sleek hydrogen fuel-cell sedan into limited production next year and also will sell a unique mass-market hybrid in the USA within two years, priced less than the $25,000 Civic hybrid, according to USA Today.
The automaker announced the vehicles yesterday at a demonstration of prototypes of the FCX fuel-cell sedans it will offer in the USA next year.
Posted by at 9:50 AM | Permalink
May 9, 2007
General Motors yesterday became the first automaker to join the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a group whose goals include reducing greenhouse gases by at least 60% by 2050 and creating economic opportunity for its member organizations, according to The Detroit Free Press.
GM was one of 14 organizations that joined the 3-month-old partnership, known as USCAP, this week. Others included Midland-based Dow Chemical Co., Johnson & Johnson and Shell.
Posted by at 10:48 AM | Permalink
The natural-gas powered car is a paradox, writes Chris Woodyard in USA Today.
The fuel is readily available, North American-produced and virtually pollution-free. Many motorists could even fill up in their own garages every night just like they would power-up with one of the gas-electric plug-in hybrids still under development.
But no one seems to care. Not government officials. Not auto executives. Not consumers. Not even some environmentalists.
Most major automakers offered them in the 1990s, primarily for government and corporate fleets, but today, when natural gas offers a common-sense, immediate and ecological relief valve to the nation's dependence on foreign oil, only one major automaker still makes a production model — and sales stink.
Posted by at 10:13 AM | Permalink
May 8, 2007
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Monday faulted U.S. automakers for failing to do what foreign manufacturers have accomplished in producing fuel-efficient vehicles, according to the Associated Press.
Posted by at 10:30 AM | Permalink
May 4, 2007
Automakers would have until 2020 to raise the fuel efficiency of their cars and trucks to an average of 35 miles per gallon under a key U.S. Senate proposal, which includes several clauses Detroit automakers have pushed, giving federal regulators power over future rules, according to the Detroit Free Press
The amendment offered Friday by Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, and Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, will be the starting point when the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee meets Tuesday to consider passing a fuel economy increase to the full Senate.
Posted by at 11:45 AM | Permalink
May 3, 2007
Farmers in some of the most unlikely places are planting corn this year as demand for the grain to make ethanol has led to skyrocketing prices, sparking a corn rush throughout the USA, according to USA Today.
U.S. farmers are expected to plant the largest corn crop since World War II this year, switching acreage from soybeans, cotton, rice and other crops and planting on land that has been sitting idle for years. The move is in response to soaring demand for ethanol, commonly produced from corn in the USA.
Posted by at 10:07 AM | Permalink
May 2, 2007
I finally got around to seeing Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" and recommend it highly. Even though it has long seemed to me obvious that our carbon emissions had to be having an impact on the world's atmosphere, I was surprised and pretty horrified by the weight of evidence the former vice president and president elect has built up.
Certainly, Gore has focused attention on this issue like no one else and the move underway toward alternative fuels, for example, is bound to gain even more momentum.
Gore quickly defines global warming - the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that prevents the escape of reflected sunlight .
He then demonstrates through a series of charts how the modern era is burdened by a global population of about 6 billion compared with 2 billion when he was born; and how the burning of fossil fuels that started in earnest with the coal-fired factories of the industrial revolution in the 19th Century has caused the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to literally go off a chart that traces the data over 650,000 years through ice cores from Antartica!
He then points out evidence of a changing environment, including the number of 'record' hot years, the increase in major storms including Hurricane Katrina, the rapid retreat of the world's glaciers and the ongoing meltdown in the Arctic.
The evidence is overwhelming and it's astonishing that there is still a cadre of drivelers who continue to belittle the entire concept.
The documentary, which won an Oscar, is basically a lecture which he admits he has given "over 1,000 times." Well, practice makes perfect and the presentation is extremely tight and focused.
He ends it by pointing out that the technology exists to avert disaster; what we need is the political will. The notion that the current administration of former fossil fuel executives has any interest in this is risible; hopefully, a changing of the guard in 2008 will include a renewed focus on this very serious and growing problem.
But there is always the possibility that by the fall of 2008, we will have already experienced a monumental catastrophe that will make Katrina seem like a picnic. For while the move is on to alternative fuels, consider that China is planning to build 500 new coal-fired power plants over the next decade, according to an NPR report this morning.
Posted by at 12:39 PM | Permalink
May 1, 2007
The emissions noose around the auto industry is getting tighter, in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling that says the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has the authority to limit carbon dioxide emissions, according to thecarconnection.com which cited the Washington Post.
The industry's longtime political protector, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., has warned automakers there is probably no chance of preventing Congress and the Bush administration from raising fuel economy standards.
Posted by at 9:42 AM | Permalink
April 30, 2007
Ethanol-powered vehicles aren't just coming to a showroom near you. Vehicles that run on an ethanol-gas (E85) blend are already here, and automakers are ramping up production of them to cut our use of imported oil and thecarconnection.com provides a list of 10 vehicles available now.
Posted by at 2:42 PM | Permalink
April 25, 2007
Expect diesel technology to hit like a tornado next year because depsite all the hoopla about ethanol, biodiesel and hydrogen fuel cells, it seems to me that clean diesel will join gas hybrids be the alternative fuel of choice in the near future.
A week ago, USA Today published a story about the plans of a number of auto manufacturers to bring diesels to market next year. They include Audi, DaimlerChrysler, GM, Honda, Nissan and Volkswagen.
Certainly the German auto makers have taken a solid lead in developing clean burning diesel engines. The Volkswagen Group has developed exceptionally fast and powerful diesel engines with its Turbocharged Direct Injection (TDI) technology. The essence (if you will excuse the pun) of TDI is the enormous pressure applied in injecting the diesel into the combustion chamber. The result is a fine vapor that burns exceptionally efficiently.
At the same time, government regulations in Europe and now here have cleaned diesel fuel by removing the sulfur which was added for lubrication. It turns out biodiesel does the job and is cleaner. Indeed using it as an additive is about as much use as we can expect to get out of biodiesel given the minuscule amounts being produced.
VW's Audi division has been dominating the race tracks with its R10 TDI Le Mans racecar; the car is incredibly fast, almost emission free and practically silent.
Those three attributes make the new diesel technology very attractive. And don't forget that diesel engines are more efficient than gasoline ones - ie they get more miles per gallon. Overall, they present a very attractive mix of performance, fuel-efficiency, quietness, low-emissions and the traditional low-maintenance associated with diesel engines.
To be sure, it's still a fossil fuel, so it's not a perfect solution. But in the short term, it's certainly a viable alternative to gasoline in that diesel is readily available at the nation-wide network of gas stations. That's a problem with ethanol based E85, hydrogen fuel cell technology and compressed natural gas. That and production limitations.
I agree with the president that hydrogen fuel cell technology offers the most viable alternative to fossil fuels because electricity is undoubtedly the way to go - but it's at least 20 years away. In the meantime, expect more manufacturers to get on the clean diesel bandwagon as it establishes itself as the breakout alternative fuel for the near term.
Actually, BMW has already taken it one step further by proposing to build diesel hybrids by 2010. That's a really smart combination.
Posted by at 11:04 AM | Permalink
April 24, 2007
Hoping to redeem itself among environmentalists and portray itself as a car company worth keeping around, Ford said yesterday that it had given its environmental chief a broader job and bigger title, according to USA Today.
Saying he's convinced that global warming is a real threat and is man-made, Ford CEO Alan Mulally elevated industry veteran Sue Cischke to senior vice president for sustainability, environment and safety engineering. Cischke, previously vice president for environment and safety engineering, reports directly to Mulally. "Green is good business," Mulally said. "Companies that make the products and services people want … (using) the least resources" will stay in business and profit
Posted by at 9:32 AM | Permalink
April 20, 2007
Following up on the high-profile launch of its plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt concept, at January's Detroit Auto Show, General Motors returns with an alternate take on the show car at the Shanghai Motor Show, according to thecarconnection.com. This Volt version uses a downsized battery paired with a hydrogen-powered fuel cell.
Posted by at 10:10 AM | Permalink
April 19, 2007
Diesel is about to make a major comeback. Nissan plans to sell a diesel-power version of its Maxima sedan in the USA in 2010, joining a small but rapidly growing parade of diesel sellers, according to USA Today.
And Volkswagen says that, for the first time, it is developing diesels specifically for the U.S. market and will sell them in the USA first, instead of starting in Europe.
Together, those signal a new willingness by automakers to offer fuel-saving diesels in what has been considered an anti-diesel market.
Posted by at 9:25 AM | Permalink
April 18, 2007
Emissions from vehicles running E85, or 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, are just as harmful to humans as those from vehicles that run on regular gasoline, according to leftlanenews.com which cites a new study directed by Stanford Associate Professor Mark Jacobson at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
Jacobson argues that switching to E85 could result in higher ozone-related mortality, hospitalization and asthma because it could cause the ozone problem in urban areas to worsen.
Posted by at 10:52 AM | Permalink
Nissan plans to sell a diesel-powered Maxima sedan in the USA in 2010, Nissan Motor CEO Carlos Ghosn said in a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington Wednesday, according to USA Today.
Ghosn said the diesel vehicle is "basically a bet that regulations will get stricter and fuel prices will get higher." He said the diesel-powered Maxima should get "up to 30% greater" mileage than a similar-size gasoline engine. And because it burns less fuel, it will produce less carbon-dioxide, a greenhouse gas.
Nissan is the second Japanese automaker to announce a diesel car for the U.S. market. Honda said last year that it will sell a diesel car in the U.S. in 2009.
Posted by at 10:26 AM | Permalink
April 17, 2007
As the auto industry moves toward more fuel-efficient, cleaner vehicles, there's a cluster of automotive, environmental and energy experts rooting for the diesel engine, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Perhaps their biggest challenge is to convince drivers that today's diesels aren't the slow, noisy, smelly diesels of the past.
A leading voice in that effort is DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group, which in January started producing its second diesel vehicle for North America. A diesel version of the Jeep Grand Cherokee will be hitting dealerships soon. It comes after the automaker sold more of the diesel Jeep Liberty than expected last year, Robert Lee, vice president of powertrain product engineering for DCX, told more than 100 people at the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress on Monday at Cobo Center in Detroit.
Posted by at 11:50 AM | Permalink
April 16, 2007
The Detroit Free Press reports that ashttp://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/BUSINESS01/704160362/1014/BUSINESS01 more than 35,000 engineers and executives gather in Detroit this week for the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress, one question will dominate the convention: What will power the car of the future?
The gas engine has dominated the U.S. auto market for decades, but gas-electric hybrids and diesel engines are gaining ground. Ethanol is being promoted as an alternative fuel, and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles are being tested in real-world conditions.
Posted by at 12:36 PM | Permalink
Could the electric vehicle be poised for a comeback? A new joint venture between Nissan Motor Co., NEC Corporation, and its subsidiary, NEC TOKIN Corporation, could pave the way for a new generation of battery cars, including super-high-efficiency hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and pure electric vehicles with far more range than the EVs California consumers snubbed in the 1990s, according to thecarconnection.com.
Posted by at 12:33 PM | Permalink
Could the electric vehicle be poised for a comeback? A new joint venture between Nissan Motor Co., NEC Corporation, and its subsidiary, NEC TOKIN Corporation, could pave the way for a new generation of battery cars, including super-high-efficiency hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and pure electric vehicles with far more range than the EVs California consumers snubbed in the 1990s, according to thecarconnection.com.
Posted by at 12:33 PM | Permalink
Check out a photo gallery of Forbes.com's list of 10 greenest vehicles. While most are gas hybrids, four are small, economic gas-powered cars.
Posted by at 10:14 AM | Permalink
April 13, 2007
Bay Area residents concerned about the climate crisis are joining with thousands across America in the largest ever National Day of Climate Action tomorrow, according to a Automotive.com. The Step It Up "Lighten Up Your Ride" clean car rally -- part expo, part action fair -- will be showcasing the cutting edge of clean car technology and calling on Congress to step it up: cut CO2 emissions 80% by 2050.
The clean car rally will feature the latest in green vehicle technology with demonstrations of plug-in hybrid cars, 100% electric cars, bio-diesel conversions and solar buses. The day will end with a Clean Car Caravan of vehicles and bikes to the GM dealership in Marin, calling on the company to "Step It Up GM: Plug In Hybrids not Hummers, Now!"
When: Saturday, April 14, 2007, 11 am - 3 pm
Where: 610 Mason Street, The Presidio, San Francisco. (There are two Mason Streets in San Francisco, and this event is located in The Presidio, adjacent to Sports Basement facing Crissy Field, not in the Financial District.)
Posted by at 10:30 AM | Permalink
April 12, 2007
At last someone is combining two of the most promising alternative fuel technologies, according to leftlanenews.com. BMW is considering offering hybrid versions of its 5-Series sedan and X5 crossover in 2010, according to a new report by Britain's Autocar citing a BMW engineering source, leftlanenews.com says. Unlike most hybrids, the vehicles would run on a combination of diesel and electricity, rather than the typical gasoline-electric configuration.
Posted by at 12:29 PM | Permalink
Hybrid cars and trucks, which use gas-electric technology, have become the poster children for energy savings in the automobile world, but industry has been paying attention, and hybrids are quietly starting to show up in other transportation uses, from locomotives to construction equipment, according to USA Today.
After looking over several hybrid and other "green" commercial vehicles recently, President Bush said they will play a role in meeting his administration's goal of reducing gasoline usage by 20% over 10 years.
Posted by at 11:22 AM | Permalink
April 9, 2007
Just as automakers prepared to parade their signature V-8 models with 300, 400 and even 500-plus horsepower last week at the opening of the New York International Auto Show, the New York Times noted yesterday, a landmark Supreme Court ruling on greenhouse gas emissions wafted a message to the petrol-fueled party in Manhattan: enjoy the fun while it lasts.
Posted by at 10:31 AM | Permalink
April 3, 2007
Forbes.com's Dan Lienert reports on a number of companies and technologies offering "do-it-yourself" kits for building hybrid cars or converting existing cars into hybrids.
For example, for $200, Robert Q. Riley Enterprises, a Phoenix-based design company, offers construction plans for a three-wheeled sports car called the XR-3. A completed XR-3 will reportedly deliver between 125 and 225 miles per gallon, Lienert reports. A three-cylinder diesel engine powers the front wheels and an electric motor run by a lithium-ion battery powers the rear wheel. The driver can switch between battery-only, diesel-only and hybrid driving modes. The DIY kit will be available this May or June.
Riley is just one of several companies offering electric-car conversions. Spend, say, $15,000 to $25,000, and you can have any car you want converted into an electric one thanks to an array of emerging, green technologies carmakers are unveiling, Lienert writes.
Posted by at 10:31 AM | Permalink
March 27, 2007
Today was day two of President Bush promoting the use of
alternative fuel vehicles, to help meet his goal of reducing oil consumption
in the US, by 20 percent in ten years. See a clip on AP Video
Posted by at 3:03 PM | Permalink
March 20, 2007
The first commercial compressed air car is on the verge of production and beginning to attract a lot of attention, according to Gizmag.com. With a recently signed partnership with Tata, India’s largest automotive manufacturer, the prospects of very cost-effective mass production are now a distinct possibility. The MiniC.A.T is a simple, light urban car, with a tubular chassis that is glued not welded and a body of fibreglass.
The car costs less than $3 to fill a tank on which it can run for about 160 miles. The car will cost about $7,300 and has a top speed of nearly 70 mph. The oil - vegetable, naturally - has to be changed about every 30,000 miles. Initial plans are to produce 3,000 cars per year."
Posted by at 10:44 AM | Permalink
March 9, 2007
Bentley, one of the last of the old auto aristocrats, is considering offering hybrid and diesel versions of its luxury models, according to leftlanenews.com. Of course, the brand while ostensibly British, is owned by Volkswagen. Leftlanenews.com cites the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung for the news.
Posted by at 11:42 AM | Permalink
March 7, 2007
Toyota introduced its Hybrid X concept car at the Geneva Motor show Wednesday which the auto giant says represents the future of its successful Prius. It's a 4-door conventional family car with a radical futuristic design that can be viewed at leftlanenews.com
Posted by at 11:35 AM | Permalink
February 26, 2007
Speaking of clean diesel from Mercedes-Benz, see Los Angeles Times' auto columnist Dan Neil's written and video review of the company's E320 Bluetec diesel. The video include a shot of him warming a bagel in its exhaust and then eating to make the point that emissions are "that clean."
Posted by at 4:33 PM | Permalink
Mercedes-Benz will unveil its Vision C 220 Bluetec diesel concept car at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show, according to leftlanenews.com. The company says the car achieves 43 miles per gallon. The Geneva Motor Show opens March 8 and runs 10 days.
Posted by at 11:27 AM | Permalink
February 23, 2007
Gas-electric hybrids don't save as much fuel as previously thought, according to new government fuel-economy ratings cited by USAToday. The new ratings, which are not unexpected and reflect a more accurate way of measuring hybrid engines, go into effect with the 2008 models.
Posted by at 1:59 PM | Permalink
