Ford News - ITM Power shows off British-engineered, hydrogen-powered Ford Focus
October 29, 2008 by tsikot · Comments Off
ITM Power shows off British-engineered, hydrogen-powered Ford Focus
Filed under: Hydrogen, Ford, UK
The ITM/Roush Ford Transit van is not the only hydrogen-powered vehicle to make an appearance before UK government officials in late October. ITM Power showed off its converted Ford Focus to Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg MP and Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable MP last week at ITM’s Sheffield factory. The MPs drove the car and visited ITM’s home hydrogen demonstration suite “where everything from a cooker to a television runs on power produced cleanly from hydrogen.”
Over a year ago, ITM said it had reached a bi-fuel “breakthrough.” The idea, as we described at the time is to use an electrolizer to make hydrogen from energy (renewable, when available) and water. The hydrogen is then fed to the appliances, the car and to make electricity in fuel cells. I’m still not sure why one would want to convert electricity to hydrogen just to go back to electricity, but at least the car doesn’t emit and CO2. I suppose that’s what led the MPs to make their glowing statements pasted after the jump.
[Source: ITM Power]
Continue reading ITM Power shows off British-engineered, hydrogen-powered Ford Focus
ITM Power shows off British-engineered, hydrogen-powered Ford Focus originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]ford cars, ford news, ford models, ford[/tags]
Chevrolet News - Rumors of the V8’s death apparently untrue, 84% of Camaros are so ordered
October 29, 2008 by tsikot · Comments Off
Rumors of the V8’s death apparently untrue, 84% of Camaros are so ordered
We would guess that General Motors didn’t see this one coming, but early reports indicate that out of 6,000 Camaro orders that the automaker has already received, 84 percent are for models powered by the massive V8 engine. This is a huge surprise, given that GM went to great lengths to ensure that its pony car was both just as stylish and an excellent performer in its standard V6-powered guise. That six cylinder engine is the same powerplant that sits under the Cadillac CTS’s well-creased hood and produces something just north of 300-horsepower, which is more than enough to get the modern muscle car moving.
There have been numerous people suggesting that the performance car era has officially come to an end. We’re not ready to make an judgments based on 6,000 early adopters, but perhaps this just continues to prove that there will always be some number of consumers out there that are willing to pay a premium for performance. Our bet is that these numbers even themselves out over the next year and that the ratio of V6s to V8s adjusts to something more in line with what you’d expect.
[Source: Camaro5]
Rumors of the V8’s death apparently untrue, 84% of Camaros are so ordered originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 28 Oct 2008 17:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]chevrolet cars, chevolet news, chevrolet models[/tags]
Toyota News - Scion iQ looking more and more likely in U.S.
October 28, 2008 by tsikot · Comments Off
Scion iQ looking more and more likely in U.S.
Filed under: MPG, Scion, Toyota, USA
The hints from a few weeks ago that Toyota would be bringing the tiny iQ to the U.S. with a Scion badge are looking more and more like the truth. AutoblogGreen reader Mark F. got an email from his local Scion dealer, Bill Kidd’s in Maryland, that describes “The Future of Scion.” The full update on the Scion brand reads as follows:
Scion is recognized world wide for their distinctive and customizable models, with the dependability of a Toyota product. Recently, the Scion xD was recognized by Consumer Reports as the #1 reliable new car with 80% less problems than the average model. Scion remains committed to bringing Gen Y buyers a unique, yet affordable vehicle, and 2010 is sure to be the biggest year yet. The highly anticipated, newly redesigned tC will be released, as well as an all new vehicle: The Scion IQ. As the smallest, most fuel efficient Scion, it’s sure to turn heads. Stay tuned!
Nothing new there, but hearing from a dealer that the Scion iQ is on the way in 2010 is about at much confirmation as we’re likely to get right now, isn’t it?
Gallery: Frankfurt 2007: Toyota iQ concept
[Source: Bill Kidd's email]
Scion iQ looking more and more likely in U.S. originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 27 Oct 2008 12:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]toyota cars, toyota news, toyota suv, toyota[/tags]
Chevrolet News - Hybrid tech won’t save the full size SUV as new Tahoe/Yukon cancelled
October 28, 2008 by tsikot · Comments Off
Hybrid tech won’t save the full size SUV as new Tahoe/Yukon cancelled
Filed under: Hybrid, MPG, Chevrolet, GM, GMC
It looks like the theory behind the creation of full-size hybrid SUVs may not hold water, at least from a marketing perspective. Certainly adding a hybrid drivetrain to a big truck will save more gas for a given number of miles driven than doing the same to a smaller more efficient car. At the same time these vehicles will still use more fuel than a smaller vehicle even at the higher mileage levels they achieve. The pitch from automakers like GM and Chrysler was that some people still need the capabilities that are offered by these vehicles such as the people towing boats on a regular basis.
However, the reality is that a combination of factors ranging from high fuel prices (at least they were high through most of the summer of 2008), increasingly restrictive credit and leasing terms and collapsing real estate values have made buyers re-evaluate their real needs in a vehicle. For those that are still able to afford new vehicles, “needs” increasingly means a smaller, more-efficient vehicle rather than a hybrid SUV. GM and Chrysler have seen the writing on the wall and the Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen received their execution orders last week. We heard earlier this year that GM had put the development of the next generation full-size trucks on hold for at least a year. Now Inside Line is reporting that, as far back as last May, the SUVs may have been killed entirely. It’s unclear what this means for the current vehicles, but if sales don’t start to at least stabilize soon, they may face the same fate as the Chryslers and die before reaching the end of their planned life cycle in 2011. Whether they live on or die sooner, they will likely be effectively replaced by the Lambda crossovers, the Acadia, Outlook, Traverse and Enclave.
[Source: Inside Line]
Hybrid tech won’t save the full size SUV as new Tahoe/Yukon cancelled originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]chevrolet cars, chevolet news, chevrolet models[/tags]
Dodge News - As gas prices fluctuate, so do pickup and SUV sales
October 28, 2008 by tsikot · Comments Off
As gas prices fluctuate, so do pickup and SUV sales
Filed under: MPG, Dodge, Ford, USA
The American buying public may have a very short attention span. Could it be that memories of the record high gas prices of a few months back have already faded away into oblivion? The answer is a definite maybe, as full-size pickups and SUV sales have rebounded a bit from their historic lows, but are still nowhere near where they were a year or two ago. What’s more, automakers seem to believe that fuel prices are set to stay high and the current lowered prices are an illusion. So, don’t expect the big truck-producing Detroit 3 and Toyota to begin ramping production back up, despite the slight sales increases.
The introduction of the new Ford F-150 and Dodge Ram for 2009 will likely keep sales of big trucks improving for the next couple of months at least. Both automakers have made some improvements in the name of fuel efficiency, with Ford going so far as to introduce a specific SFE model that features gas-saving tweaks. Still, buyers who need the utility of a truck will buy one, and the rest of the market will probably continue to shift towards smaller and more efficient cars and crossovers.
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
As gas prices fluctuate, so do pickup and SUV sales originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[tags]dodge cars, dodge news, dodge models[/tags]
