Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Gas 2.0

Gas 2.0

Rinspeed BamBoo EV a Grown-Up Golf Cart

Posted: 01 Dec 2010 04:51 PM PST

Bamboo is one of those surprisingly strong and versatile materials that often goes overlooked. It is so strong that in China, they even use it for construction scaffolding. So why not build a car from bamboo? Well, someone did.

Frank M. Rinderknecht, who runs the Rinspeed design studio, has just unveiled his latest creation with is set to debut at the 2011 Geneva International Auto Show…three months from now. Called simply the BamBoo, details on this crazy concept are few and far between.

So far, all Rinspeed has been able to say is that it resembles a "grown-up golf car." The BamBoo will be powered by an electric motor, and many of the interior components are made from bamboo fibers. The top comes, giving you an open-air experience not unlike the Jeep Wrangler.

It reminds me of the Wrangler in other ways too (like those adorable headlights) though it is more beach-cruiser than off-roader. Still pretty neat, but I was kinda hoping the whole car would be made from bamboo. How cool would that be?

Source: Rinspeed

Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Fiat Announces Split w/ Fiat

Posted: 01 Dec 2010 02:39 PM PST

As of January 1, the Italian industrial giant Fiat will be split into 2 companies:  Fiat and Fiat Industrial, each with a new logo (above) and a more dedicated focus to their respective areas of expertise.  For its part, Fiat will focus on the automotive industry, moving forward with a renewed focus on its core brands, which include Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, and Lancia.  At the same time, the new board of Fiat Industrial will be able to focus on developing new “green” products for Iveco, Case New Holland, and Irisbus free of the (arguably) more volatile automotive arm.

So, what does this mean for the US and Europe?

Quite a bit, actually – especially if:

  1. you live and work in the United States’ auto industry,
  2. you’re a fan of Ferraris, and
  3. you own VW stock.

Spinning off the automotive arm of Fiat into its own entity makes a possible merger with Chrysler (which Fiat now has a 20% stake in) a much easier pitch for Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, who must get government approval for any official Chrsyler-Fiat merger.  In recent weeks, Marchionne has admitted to wanting a bigger piece of Auburn Hills-based Chrysler, and is reportedly preparing Fiat-controlled supercar builder Ferrari for a quick sale or IPO in 2011, in a bid to purchase more Chrysler stock during the US-government mandated IPO of that company.  Once Fiat buys enough of Chrysler to have a controlling share, they can simply force the merger, effectively buying a substantial foothold in the North American marketplace, while still hedging their bets in terms of branding and marketing.

I mentioned that this split would affect fans of Ferrari, and it’s clear that a sale of the brand would certainly be a change – but what does VW (my “no. 3″ up there) have to do with any of this?

Everything.

The global may or may not be looking up (depending on who you believe) but the reality is that the global market for multi-billion-dollar supercar manufacturers with sub-par fuel economy and an “anti-green” image is pretty soft (hybrid Ferraris notwithstanding).  That said, the only real potential buyers for Ferrari are either the fledgling Chinese automakers or Germany’s Volkswagen, which has purchased supercar makers Bugatti, Lamborghini, and (most recently) Porsche – all while supplying engines to niche sportscar companies like Yes!, Fisker, and Spyker.

VW has the cash on-hand, and VW CEO Ferdinand Piech has an appetite for sporty cars.  Expect some kind of announcement from VW or Fiat/Ferrari soon.

Sources:  Fiat, via the Autoblog.

Government Buys One-in-Four GM or Ford Hybrids

Posted: 01 Dec 2010 12:47 PM PST

Hybrid sales haven't been great lately, though it isn't for a lack of help. The U.S. General Services Administration has bought at least 14,584 hybrids from Ford and GM, about a quarter of the hybrids sold between the two companies.

Since Barack Obama took office, the GSA has been buying up hybrids at a regular rate. Yet the hybrid purchases still represent just 10% of the 145,473 vehicles the GSA bought in the past two years. I had no idea our government bought so many vehicles regularly.

An overwhelming amount of those hybrids were bought from Ford and GM. Chrysler probably could have got in on this action too, had they actually made hybrids for more than two months.

Now I am sure some of you will argue that many hybrids are not cost effective compared to smaller petrol cars. Sometimes that is true, although the GSA managed to knock about $5,281 off the sticker price of each hybrid purchased. That's what you get for buying in bulk, although to be fair the price of the hybrids ranged from $23,072 to a whooping $47,079 (probably hybrid Suburbans), so the actual savings per-car could be quite lower. Among common purchases were 64 percent of all the Chevrolet Malibu Hybrids produced (and the car has since been canceled) and 14 percent of the Ford Escape Hybrids sold.

Image: Edmunds Green Car Advisor

You might be scratching your head a bit about some of the numbers. Let me put it like this; in 2009, 290,231 gas-electric hybrid cars and trucks were sold in the U.S. Over 195,000 of those were Toyota’s, with the other 95,000 split between Honda, Ford, GM, and Nissan in descending order of number of hybrids sold. While Ford and GM hybrid sales will probably take an even bigger bite out of Toyota in 2010, that data is still a few weeks away.

There is a lot of concern these days about the budget deficit, and rightly so. The government should run leaner and meaner, and hybrids and other alternative forms of transportation are a great way to get there. Hybrids might cost more now, but the price keeps going down, and the less money spent on gas, the better. It is also a sort of circular justification for all the money our government has handed out to develop these technologies.

The GSA won’t stop at hybrids though, as they have plans to buy Chevy Volts, Ford Focus Electrics, and other vehicles to keep fuel costs down. Over a couple hundred-thousand vehicles and a few years of use, the financial benefits will really start to pile up. It has to start somewhere, and with the government pouring so much money into alternative fuels, they should be buying the damn cars. Everybody wins with this one, right?

Source: Bloomberg

Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Energy Secretary Says U.S. Mustn’t Fall Behind China in Green Energy

Posted: 01 Dec 2010 10:50 AM PST

When the Soviet Union fell, America was the lone superpower left. Yet in the Far East, a Dragon of Sustainable Energy is rising. Energy Secretary Steven Chu says the U.S. can't fall behind China in the Green Energy Race.

I try not to be paranoid about China, but the U.S. has dug itself into a deep hole relying so heavily on petroleum products. China is the world's biggest polluter right now, but they are quickly transforming themselves into a place where green energy has a home. Speaking to the National Press Club, Chu said it was important that the U.S. does not cut funding to green projects and intiatives lest we fall behind the rest of the world, especially China. He wants us to focus as intently on green energy as we did trying to beat the Soviets to the moon after the launch of their first satellite, Sputnik.

Do we really want to be the last country paying for petroleum when there are an abundance of “free” energy sources all around us, like the wind and sun?

Just look at what China is doing to get ahead. Their initiatives run the gamut from $17 billion to fund electric and alterantive fuel cars to building 4,000 miles of high-speed rail in just five years, the most extensive high-speed rail network in the world. Most of the biggest solar panel companies are now in China (and Germany), and China is even expanding into wind turbines.

Basically, China is trying to outpace the rest of the world and become a leader in green energy at a me when many countries are trying to embrace green energy. They could become a huge supplier of green energy products, taking center stage as the world’s most advance country. Yeah, they’ve got a long way to go, but they have made impressive progress in just ten years. What happens in the next ten years?

It is not in th interests of America to be #2. We are #1 in pretty much everything that matters, and we should want to be the world leaders in clean energy. Alas, our country and Congress is divided right now over exactly what to do next. While our politicians are busy bickering though, the Commies are getting quite a head start.

At what point does that head start turn into an insurmountable lead?

Source: Green Car Advisor

Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Chevrolet Volt Production Begins Today, First Volt Going to Charity

Posted: 30 Nov 2010 05:36 PM PST

In order to increase their exposure (and good Karma) automakers often donate special cars to charity. Sometimes they are special editions, other times it is the first-ever of its kind, as is the case with the Chevy Volt.

Production of the Chevy Volt began today, and GM just launched a website, BidontheVolt.com, to sell the second production car. Why the second car? Well GM has this little collection of cars called the GM Heritage Collection, and basically they kept the first of every car there. So in actuality you would be bidding on the second-ever production Volt, the first one for sale to the public.

The current bid is up to a whooping $180,000, and there are still almost two weeks left in the bidding. So what charity will get the money? Well GM will put the money right back into its hometown of Detroit, donating the proceeds of the sale to the Detroit Public School Foundation. The money will specifically be used to support Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math education initiatives in the Detroit school system.

I guess GM is feeling pretty charitable these days, and with good reason. Say what you will about the auto bailouts, but at least GM is giving back. I haven't seen too much generosity on the part of the banks, unless you happen to be a favored executive.

Source: GM

Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)