Thursday, April 1, 2010

Gas 2.0

Gas 2.0

Ford, Microsoft Announce “Hohm” Electric Car Charging Partnership

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 12:54 PM PDT

One of the biggest arguments against electric cars is that all those cars plugging in at the same time will overload our already beleaguered electric grid. And there might be some truth to that. When the flat screen television became popular almost overnight, some local grids were nearly overwhelmed, though eventually they adapted. But an electric car (depending on the battery size and how much it has been depleted) could possibly double home electricity use. With many utilities shifting to variable pricing based on time of day usage, that could start to add up the dollar bills, and fast.

Foreseeing this problem, Ford announced at yesterday’s news conference that they would be partnering with Microsoft to use the Hohm electricity-monitoring software to help regulate and optimize electric car charging.

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4WD MINI Countryman to Offer Best Fuel Economy in Crossover Segment

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 12:48 PM PDT

MINI used the big stage at the 2010 New York Auto Show to show off the Countryman 4WD small crossover in the US for the first time. As far as I know, the Countryman will be the world’s smallest crossover when it hits showrooms early next year. It’s so small, in fact, that it essentially qualifies as a new market segment… I’ll take a shot at naming it right now: how’s “minicross” for you?

No official word on mileage yet from MINI, but they say it will offer the best fuel economy in the crossover segment. Which likely means higher than 30 mpg, as that’s what the upcoming Ford Edge with Ecoboost is expected to get on the highway. But there are many ways manufacturers can represent their numbers to claim “best fuel economy” in a particular segment, so we’ll just have to wait on that one.

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Mazda Bringing Brand New SKY-D Diesel Engine to US in 2012

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 09:55 AM PDT

Having just announced that they will be licensing hybrid technology from Toyota, it is clear that Mazda has never had any real desire to develop its own hybrid platform. But Mazda has always been good at engine development, and regardless of what our distant future looks like, nearly everyone agrees that the combustion engine will be with us for a long time… and there is still a lot of improvement to be made to them.

Enter Mazda stage left. At the New York Auto Show, Mazda unveiled two new engines and a transmission it claims will increase the fuel efficiency and lower the emissions of its cars dramatically by 2015. Not only that, Mazda says they will introduce a diesel engine to the US in 2012.

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Kia Unveils Gorgeous New Optima, Hybrid Coming in 2011

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 09:26 AM PDT

Kia is having a stellar year, and with the new products in their pipeline it’s starting to look all nice and rosey over in the glow of their campfire. At the New York Auto Show today, among other high profile unveils including a great looking new Sportage, Kia took the wraps off its brand new Optima sedan… and spilled the beans that a hybrid version of it will be introduced in 2011.

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Scion Unveils iQ Mini-Minicar for the US Market; Good Looks, Only So-So Mileage

Posted: 31 Mar 2010 06:37 PM PDT

First rumored more than a year ago, the much-anticipated US debut of the Toyota iQ is finally upon us… but it’s been badged as a Scion and the expected fuel economy numbers are not really all that impressive when you consider just how tiny this vehicle is. Scion says the car will eek out mileage “in the high 30s.”

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Hyundai Enters the Hybrid Market Late, But With a Bang

Posted: 31 Mar 2010 05:39 PM PDT

At the 2010 New York Auto Show today Hyundai unveiled its brand new 2011 Sonata Hybrid Bluedrive. The car will be Hyundai’s first hybrid offering when it goes on sale later this year.

Sporting a bunch of firsts on a mass market hybrid including a set of next generation lithium-polymer batteries and a 6 speed automatic transmission, the Sonata Hybrid is a true competitor right out of the gate. As a full parallel hybrid, the Sonata can operate solely on its electric motor or its combustion engine, or a combination of both.

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