November 2008
Battery Capacity Reportedly the Chief Obstacle for Germany's Electric Car Goal
By Scott Doggett November 26, 2008Batteries with limited storage capacity are the main hurdle to Germany's goal of putting 5 million electric cars on its roads by 2030, the Bloomberg news service reported today , citing the country's transportation and environment ministers. Europe's largest car market wants at least 1 million electric cars on the road by 2020 and 5 million a decade later, environment minister Sigmar Gabriel said today in Berlin. Germany currently has about 55 million cars operating nationwide. Germany lost its leadership in battery technology half a century ago and "desperately" needs to regain that expertise for electric car demand to more
Honda Provides Photos and Details of Its Eco-Driving System for the Insight Hybrid
By Scott Doggett November 26, 2008Above, the instrument panel of the Honda Insight contains lots of tools to help the motorist drive more fuel efficiently. By Scott Doggett, Contributor Honda has released images and details of the Ecological Drive Assist System as it appears in the Japanese version of the soon-to-launch Insight hybrid. The system is similar to Ford's new SmartGauge with EcoGuide instrument cluster for the 2010 Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan hybrids, as well as devices appearing in various Nissan and Toyota models, in that all are intended to help drivers use gasoline as efficiently as possible. Japan's version of the Insight more
Honda To Downplay Glum Detroit Auto Show, but Says It Isn't Pulling Out
By John O'Dell November 26, 2008By John O'Dell, Senior Editor Honda Motor Co. has joined the list of automakers downplaying the importance of January's 2009 North American International Auto Show , but the automaker says it still will use the Detroit show to debut the production version of its upcoming Insight hybrid. Unlike Nissan and several other carmakers that are pulling out of the upcoming Detroit show completely in order to save the millions of dollars show participation can cost, Honda will still be there, and will still have a range of top executives available for interviews and to promote the company's vehicles during the more
Group Seeks OK To Include Electric Vehicles in Presidential Inauguration Parade
By Scott Doggett November 26, 2008The good people at Plug-In America are dreaming of the presidential inauguration parade these days, and their dream goes something like this: Tucked in amid the procession of ceremonial military regiments, citizens' groups and marching bands proceeding down Pennsylvania Avenue on January 20 is a phalanx of zero-emissions electric vehicles led by a float featuring a windmill and an electric truck covered with solar cells. "Key to this contingent of all-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids will be a float conveying the tie-in with solar, wind and renewable power resources. Consumers often have an 'ah-ha' moment after realizing that electric more
COMMENTARY: For Bailout Blueprint, GM, Ford Might Finally Burn Rubber on Underperforming Brands
By Bill Visnic November 26, 2008By Bill Visnic The plans the Detroit Three automakers are developing to submit on December 2 to Congress in justification for their entreated $25-billion federal loan probably are being more closely guarded than the manuscript for Sarah Palin's first book, but we can guess one aspect that seems certain to feature in the bailout blueprint of both Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp.: ditching some brands that have long dogged their ever-more-fragile bottom lines. For at least a decade, critics have shouted down both GM and Ford for refusing to do what it now appears must be done -- more
'08 Impala CNG Conversion System Approved by EPA
By John O'Dell November 26, 2008An Arizona startup that grew out of an auto shop specializing in natural gas vehicle repair said it has received federal EPA certification for a kit that converts the 2008 Chevrolet Impala from gasoline to cleaner, cheaper compressed natural gas. Prices to convert the car -- kit plus labor -- should run from $11,500 to $13,000, said John Mitton, managing partner of Phoenix-based Natural Drive LLC. The system works on the LS, LT and LTZ "civilian" models and the 9C1 and 9C3 police models and on both the 3.5-liter and 3.9-liter V6 engines. The conversion system for the '08 Impala more
Honda Planning V8 -- but Not Until 2015
By Bill Visnic November 26, 2008By Peter Nunn Maybe dreams do come true, after all. Americans who have long yearned for Honda to develop a production-car V8 engine may finally be getting their wish -- if recent comments made by Honda president Takeo Fukui are any guide. In a recent media interview, Fukui was quoted as saying that Honda was now planning to strengthen the Acura brand with a production V8. Why? Because the 3.7-liter V6 currently installed in the newly face-lifted RL, the range-topper for Honda's upscale Acura sales channel -- wasn't "sufficient" to compete with other premium brands, he said. Just don't more
Strike 3: Court Dismisses Auto Industry Bid to Bar Rhode Island GHG Regulation
By John O'Dell November 25, 2008By John O'Dell, Senior Editor In yet another defeat for carmakers attempting to block state-by-state implementation of greenhouse gas regulations, a federal judge today dismissed an industry suit that sought to stop Rhode Island from imposing limits on tailpipe emissions of carbon dioxide and other climate-impacting exhaust gases. It was the third defeat for auto manufacturers, who have lost similar clean car suits in California and Vermont. In his 28-page Rhode Island decision, U.S. District Court Judge Ernest Torres said that it was apparent that automakers were trying to take "another bite of the apple" by attempting to make more
Renault-Nissan Alliance Enters ZEV Partnership With California's Sonoma County
By Scott Doggett November 25, 2008Nissan North America and California's Sonoma County have partnered to develop electric-vehicle charging stations and standards. The announcement late last week was the second partnership unveiled by the Renault-Nissan Alliance within days and was the seventh that the company had established in an effort to prepare the market and consumers for a transition to plug-in electric vehicles and plug-in electric hybrids. Nissan believes it is critical to develop standards and to build a recharging infrastructure to support electric vehicles as Japan's No. 3 automaker introduces the vehicles to consumers. Nissan has announced plans to introduce zero-emission vehicles in more
Tesla Roadster Versus Chrysler's Dodge EV Concept: Plenty to Like About Both
By Scott Doggett November 28, 2008By Scott Doggett, Contributor If Tesla's Roadster and Chrysler's Dodge EV Concept provide a glimpse of the future, sports cars made after the internal combustion engine exits production might outperform their predecessors. At a glance, the Tesla and the Dodge could be variants of one another, the Roadster being the convertible version, the Dodge the hardtop. Both of the zero-emissions vehicles are based on Lotus platforms, the Tesla on the Elise and the Dodge on the Europa S. Spinning the rear wheels of both cars are electric motors receiving power from lithium-ion battery packs. The battery pack in either more