November 2007
Cows Top Cars in Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Panel Says
By John O'Dell November 30, 2007Gastrointestinal emissions from cows and other livestock add more to global warming than tailpipe emissions from cars. That, according to a report by BetaNews.com, is from data released by panel that convened at the United Nations this week to discuss ways the information-technology industry could help improve the environment. Just behind livestock emissions as the leading source of the greenhouse gases -- water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and ozone -- that contribute to Earth's surface temperature are pollutants spewing from factories and the manufacturing infrastructure. Coming in third among the world's chief contributors to the global carbon emissions problem: cars, trains and ships... more
Coca Cola Going Hybrid for Delivery Fleet
By John O'Dell November 30, 2007Coca-Cola has begun adding hybrid delivery trucks to its vehicle fleet, the Christian Science Monitor reports, putting one of the new red-and-white trucks on the streets of New York this week. The truck will be joined by four others just like it by December 31. By the end of next year, Coca-Cola will have 120 hybrid delivery trucks nationwide.The hybrids' greenhouse-gas emissions will be 90 percent less than those from regular trucks, according to their manufacturer, International Truck and Engine Corp. more
Retired GM Chairman Roger B. Smith Dies at Age 82
By Michelle Krebs November 30, 2007By Michelle Krebs Roger B. Smith, the General Motors chairman who led the worldâs largest automaker in the 1980s through a period of significant change, died in Detroit on Thursday after a brief illness. He was 82. Smith served for only a decade as GM chairman, retiring on July 31, 1990, but, for better or worse, Smith changed the worldâs largest manufacturing corporation more than any chairman since Alfred P. Sloan Jr., who chaired GM from 1937 to 1956 and had defined modern-day GM to that point. And the change was tumultuous -â forced by external factors and brought about more
Accord Near on 35 MPG Fuel Economy Standard
By John O'Dell November 30, 2007Senate and House negotiators are closing in on an agreement on energy legislation that could come as early as today and that will significantly raise fuel economy standards but maintain separate rules for cars and light trucks. Legislators have been close to an agreement since Monday, and an accord is likely by the time Congress resumes next week after its two-week Thanksgiving holiday. "We have made much progress and I am optimistic we will reach an agreement soon," Rep. John Dingell of Michigan, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said in a statement Thursday night. "It is my more
Porsche Boss Collects Giant Paycheck
By Michelle Krebs November 30, 2007By Bill Visnic It will be a merry Christmas this year –- and for many Christmases future –- for Porsche AG CEO Wendelin Wiedeking, as the Financial Times cites sources within Porsche AG as estimating Wiedeking last year made between €60 million to €70 million -'– a thundering $88.5 million to $103.4 million based on current exchange rates. The figure is gaudy by almost any measure short of Wall Street compensation, but particularly in the perspective of typical European (and German) executive pay. The FT indicates the most extravagant 2006 pay for a German executive was €13 million (slightly more more
Challenge X Provides Look at the Future
By John O'Dell November 29, 2007Students Modified SUVs for Clean, Green Running in Challenge X There's a lot of energy being expended on the green car front, both within the auto industry and on the outside, which is where many of the breakthroughs come from. After all, two years ago while a number of small start-ups in California were hammering together homemade plug-in hybrid versions of the Toyota Prius, Toyota the other major automakers were adamant that mass-market plug-ins would never fly. Too expensive and too technologically messy, they said. Battery technology would never advance to the point that would make them practical, they more
It's Time to Wake Up
By John O'Dell November 29, 2007It would be heartbreaking if it hadn't been expected. The new "avoiders" study from J.D. Power and Associates finds that environmental concern is one of the least cited of the reasons people give for picking one car (or truck) while avoiding a competing model. Fuel economy, though, is one of the most frequently mentioned reasons people cite for selecting one vehicle over another. The reason is pretty simple: we have to pay for gas or diesel, so we know the direct cost and feel it directly when the price goes up. But in a nation that until recently has denied more
GM Design Expands to India and Possibly Dubai
By Michelle Krebs November 29, 2007General Motors opened a full-fledged design studio in India this week and is considering a design studio in Dubai. GM officially opened GM India Design Studio in Bangalore this week, and GM executives have been on recent scouting missions to Dubai for a possibly design studio focused on luxury vehicles there. GM Design Chief Ed Welburn told AutoObserver he wants GM’s designers in India to become more involved with actually designing vehicles for their home market, one of the world’s fastest-growing car markets. The India studio will help with designs of future products for global markets, mostly small cars. more
Survey Says: Young People Prefer Imports
By Michelle Krebs November 29, 2007Whether you prefer a domestic vehicle or an import depends largely on your age, a new study finds. The younger you are, the more likely you are to buy an import and avoid a domestic. Thatâs the primary finding of the J.D. Power and Associates 2007 Avoider Study released Thursday. The survey looks at why consumers donât consider particular models when car shopping. Other interesting tidbits suggest the domestic automakers have a lot more work to do in the perception of their vehicles. more
New Mexico Joins Air Quality Drive, Faces Suit
By John O'Dell November 30, 2007New Mexico has become the 13th state to adopt California's Clean Cars program that, among other things, regulates automotive greenhouse gas emissions. The measure was approved this week by the state's top air quality regulator, the New Mexico Environmental Improvement Board, and by the Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Air Quality Control Board, which oversees the state's major population center. But even before the two boards voted, their actions were challenged in a state court lawsuit, filed by four Democratic state legislators, a group of car dealers and a farm owner. The suit challenged the right of the air board to adopt the more