Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Gas 2.0

Gas 2.0

Ferrari Prez Pissed About Smaller Engines for F1

Posted: 05 Jan 2011 10:24 AM PST

Green racing is garnering support from unexpected places. Just not Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo, who called Formula One's move from 2.4 liter V8's to turbocharged 1.6 liter four-cylinder engines a "bit pathetic." Ouch.

Speaking to German publication Auto Motor und Sport, Montezemolo said "It's not for a sport in which we once had twelve-cylinder engines. Four cylinders is not F1. We are not going to build four-cylinder engines for our road cars just because we now need them for F1, [and] for the top class of racing it sounds a bit pathetic.”

Back in December, the World Motor Sport Council approved a plan that mandates the engine change by 2013. The current rules stipulate the use of 2.4 liter, naturally-aspirated V8 engines, and have been in place by 2006. So by 2013, these engines will have been seeing duty for over a half-dozen years. The new 1.6 liter turbo engines will be paired with a Kinetic Energy Recovery System, or KERS. This hybrid system stores energy from braking, spinning a flywheel. When the driver hits a button, they unleash that built-up power for a boost of speed for a quick passing maneuver. What’s so bad about that?

In fact, if you look at F1's history, every five to ten years the engine rules change, going up, down, naturally aspirated, supercharged, turbocharged., pretty much every engine combo you can think of. The drop in displacement to 1.6 liters shouldn't surprise anybody. It isn't even the smallest engines F1 has ever used. Back in 1961, F1 switched to using 1.5 liter naturally-aspirated engines, and while these engines took a while to mature, they ended up being the fastest single-seaters in Europe for their time.

With the world rapidly changing, and more people becoming more concerned about emissions and fuel efficiency, this was a pretty obvious move. So I don't understand why Mr. Montezemolo is upset. Sure, Ferrari doesn't make any four-cylinder engines. Honda doesn't make any 2.8 liter V8 engines either, but that didn't stop them from racing.

So to Mr. Montezemolo, I say quit complaining, and start engineering. You've got two years to come up with something. I suggest you get to work, and maybe read a history book while you’re at it.

Source: Yahoo!

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.

Toyota Thinks Prius will be the Best-Selling Car in America by 2020

Posted: 05 Jan 2011 07:33 AM PST

The sales figures for the auto industry were recently released, and the news is good…as long as you're not Toyota. Despite this, Toyota execs expects Prius-badged vehicles to be the best sellers in America by 2020.

Toyota has not hidden the fact that it is working on a line of vehicles bearing the Prius name, including an upcoming MPV and possibly a crossover or coupe later on. The Prius is, by far, the best-selling hybrid vehicle in America and the rest of the world. Bob Carter, Toyota America's VP of Sales, told Automotive News that the Prius nameplate will be the #1 selling vehicle in the U.S. by the end of the decade. That's a pretty tall order to fill, and I'm extremely doubtful of Toyota's prospects.

Why? First, let's look at some hard numbers. The top-selling vehicle in America, for the 34th-straight year, is the Ford F-series pickups, which sold over 528,000 trucks in 2010. Ford as a whole sold enough vehicles to regain the #2 spot in America from Toyota. In fact, Toyota (including Lexus and Scion) is the only company to have lost sales compared to the dismal sales of 2009. Not a good sign.

Faltering sales aren't the only reason for Toyota to be worried though. They may have the world's best-selling hybrid, but one of the main reasons is that the Prius was the only game in town for a better part of the past decade. Not for long. The Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt are now being delivered to eager customers, and a lot of electric cars and hybrids from major automakers and start-ups alike will be hitting the road in the next five to ten years.

People are going to have a lot more choices aside from the Prius, and even Toyota fans are looking outside of the brand after the past year’s debacles. Toyota's massive recalls and the still-unresolved unintended acceleration issue have lost it a lot of good will with its legion of loyal followers (the uninformed media hype didn't help either.) It isn't just Toyota's missteps that are costing it sales though; despite Detroit's bankruptcy woes, American buyers are feeling more patriotic in their automotive purchases and are giving Ford, GM, and even Chrysler more serious consideration than in previous years. American car sales are on the rise, and prospects look good.

For all my doubts though, Prius sales are up. The Prius posted its best-ever December, moving over 15,000 units last month and over 140,000 total units for 2010, or 8% of Toyota’s total U.S. sales. That's a 0.9% increase over 2009, despite overall Toyota sales being down, and the Camry and Corolla still managed to take the 3rd and 5th best-selling vehicle positions for 2010, so Toyota is still sitting pretty with a lot of people. And with a Prius plug-in, MPV, and other vehicles on the way, I don't see Toyota having a problem holding on to the #1 hybrid sales position. But best-selling vehicle in America? That's a lofty branch Toyota is reaching for.

Source: Automotive News

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.
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Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Gas 2.0

Gas 2.0

Navy Receives First Chevy Fuel Cell Vehicles

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 03:58 PM PST

Even the U.S. military is worried about peak oil and weaning its weapons off of crude oil. A few days ago, the Navy took delivery of Chevy Equinox full-cell vehicles in the Aloha State, Hawaii.

The vehicle is part of the Hawaii Hydrogen Initiative, which aims to add hydrogen fuel infrastructure and vehicles to Hawaii by 2015. The Navy is among the first customers to take delivery of the Equinox fuel-cell vehicles (whether they leased or purchased them, the press release doesn't say). GM and 11 other departments, agencies, and universities are part of the HHI, which among other things calls for the installation of 25 hydrogen fueling stations on the island of Oahu.

Oahu is home to about 900,000 people, making it the most populous of all the islands and contains both the capital of Honolulu and the naval base of Pearl Harbor. The island is the third-largest in the Hawaii chain, and has about 227 miles of coastline. In other words, it ain't very big. That's perfect, because last I heard, the Equinox fuel-cell had a range of about 200 miles on 9 lbs of hydrogen. That two-and-a-half ton vehicle takes about 12-seconds to get to 60 mph, because it has to drag along an extra 770 lbs of equipment and extra safety supports to protect the 10,000 psi fuel tank.

GM started rolling out these Equinox fuel-cell vehicles back in 2006 as part of Project Driveway, which leased fuel-cell vehicles to about 100 vehicles in three-cities to a wide variety of customers for real-world testing. It'll be a boon to Hawaii too, as this slice of paradise needs to import every ounce of oil across about 2,500 miles of Pacific Ocean. A gallon of premium fuel is hovering around $3.95, and diesel is over four bucks. These are the highest average gas prices in the nation (though I paid about $5.00 a gallon on a cliff side gas station along the Pacific Coast Highway).

A controlled fuel-cell experiment on Hawaii sounds pretty neat, but when is GM going to start selling fuel-cell vehicles? Do they not trust the technology, or do they not trust us with the technology?

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.

Ford Teases Focus Electric Ahead of CES

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 12:20 PM PST

Ford has said they are going to enter the electric car market with all guns a-blazin' later this year with their first entry, the Focus Electric. Ahead of its debut at the Consumer Electronics Show, Ford released this teaser picture.

The Consumer Electronics Show is, in the words of G4 television, "nerd mecca." It is a show generally reserved for computers and phones and all of that electronic gadgetry. Basically, it's a haven for all of the devices that kids would rather have than a car. Not the best place to unveil a new car than, right?

Wrong. I think Ford's doing this right. Rather than unveil the Focus Electric at the Detroit Auto Show next week, they are unveiling it at what is essentially a social media mecca. Nerds, geeks, and techies will be out in full force, and Ford has been forgoing many traditional marketing schemes in favor of social networking…and it's been working. Ford sales continue to impress, and word of mouth about the Blue Oval is overwhelmingly positive.

By unveiling the Focus Electric at CES, Ford is betting that its high-tech car will be welcomed with open arms by technology fans. Ford has invested a lot of money into bringing social media into its cars, and I gather that they are hoping to entice young buyers who are more interested in the latest app than horsepower figures. Ford is going to release details of the Focus Electric at CES, but expect a 100-mile all-electric range, lots of neat gizmos and touchscreens inside…and apparently a LED-lighted "fuel" filler. Kinda neat. I wonder what else do they have in store?

Source: Ford’s Facebook

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.

Hypermiling Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Crosses America on Two Fill-Ups

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 07:07 AM PST

To drum up some attention to the forthcoming 2011 Sonata Hybrid, Hyundai took its new hybrid on a cross-country trip, from San Diego to Georgia. They made the 2,269 mile trip on less than two full tanks of gas.

This summer, I did my own cross-country excursion with my girlfriend. While we managed to get over 30 mpg  in my four-cylinder Mustang over the course of 12,000 miles, we still had to fill up over 40 times during our six-week trip. That’s a lot of fuel, and a lot of money that could have been better spent elsewhere.

I wish I had one of these Hyundai hybrids. At the wheel of the hybrid Hyundai is none other than Wayne Gerdes, who also successfully drove a Ford Fusion Hybrid for over 1,445 miles on a tank of gas. He also drove a regular Sonata from New York to Chicago, managing to get over 66 mpg. This latest trip took the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid across mountain ranges and the American south, meaning this vehicle went through some pretty extreme temperature and elevation changes, which would explain why it "only" got 59.59 mpg across the country.

Hyundai did a similar trek with the standard Hyundai Sonata this summer, managing to get over 66 mpg driving from New York to Chicago, but that trip was half the length and done during the warmer summer months, when the Sonata Hybrid's battery is better able to operate. Still, it took the Hyundai Hybrid just 38 gallons of fuel and five days to cross the country, and Gerdes filled up just once, finishing the trip at Jekyll Island, Georgia, with two gallons of fuel remaining.

I'm not sure what kind of tricks Gerdes employed on this trick, such as drafting in the wake of semi trucks or coasting down hills, but you've got to hand it to this guy, he really knows how to wring the most miles from a tank of gas. The EPA rates the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid at 40 mpg on the highway, but if you've got a feather light foot and a lot of patience, it's clear you can get a lot more MPG's from these modern hybrids. Does anybody think they could do better?

Source: Hyundai

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.
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Monday, January 3, 2011

Gas 2.0

Gas 2.0

New Year, New Editor, and a Few Changes

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 04:17 PM PST

As we come up on Gas 2.0′s four-year anniversary, the site is reaching for new goals. For the better part of those four years the site has had one editor—Nick Chambers—but as the site has grown, it’s become impossible for one person to keep up with editorial duties. So, as of today Nick is moving into a new role as Site Director of Gas 2.0, and I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be taking on the title of Managing Editor.

Regular readers will know me well by now, given that I currently produce the bulk of the site’s content. I'm not your typical environmentalist. I don't drive a hybrid or live in a big city or drink complicated coffees, but I do love green cars and writing.

I’m a gearhead, in a traditional sense of the word. I started out wrenching on a 1969 Mercury Cougar, which I bought at the tender, impressionable age of 16. Eight years later and I still have that car (though it's spent less than a year on the road at any one time). My dad and I share a garage, and a love of old muscle cars. That’s just never going to change. I’ve driven cars made in Japan, Europe, and Detroit, and the machines out of Michigan always meant the most to me. I’ve owned a Pontiac Trans Am, an F-150, a Jeep Wrangler, and mostly recently, a four-cylinder Mustang that I drove 12,000 miles across the country this summer. Just ’cause. That’s the kind of person you’re dealing with.

After high-school, I went to Central Connecticut State University to study English and Journalism. You’re supposed to discover something about yourself in college, but I pretty much had myself figured out. So instead I focused on writing, and cars, and through the college car club I was introduced to a wider world of automobiles. That was when I started to realize that the forty-year old engine in my Cougar was not that far removed from the engines used in my friends’ Audi’s and Subaru’s. There were four-cylinder cars that were getting only slightly better gas mileage than my Cougar. Why? I started asking questions. I started reading into the history of the automobile. I read about the Ford Nucleon car and Chrysler's turbine cars and how the first electric car was made over 100 years ago by Porsche. Freakin’ Porsche.

I read about how many American cars weren’t made with even 50% American-sourced materials. Some American cars aren’t built in America at all. I was flabbergasted. Briefly, I turned my back on American cars and pledged allegiance to the Land of the Rising Sun, buying a Nissan 240sx and delving into that whole car sub-culture. Then I had a brief touch of infamy after an article I wrote entitled “Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage” went viral. Rush Limbaugh read my name and parts of my article on the radio. To say the least, I was misinformed, as were my sources, on many matters. However, I still stand by my final point; if you’re really concerned with saving the environment, buy a car that was built around the corner, not ten-thousand miles overseas.

After my viral evisceration, I got angry. You awful, nasty, mean-spirited, self-righteous, holier-than-thou environmentalists. Who the hell goes on a Prius forum anyway? I read a lot of threads tearing me apart, digging up my online past (nerd alert: I played lots of video games until recently) and basically dismissing me as some stupid college kid. It pissed me off, even though they were right.

Yet I stuck around some of these forums. Turns out making a car fuel efficient can be just as interesting as making it fast, or cool looking. Holy crap, people can run cars on French fry grease? That’s way cool. Wait a second, GM built an electric car in the 90′s? WTF? Why didn’t I know about that? I learned a lot, and I liked what I learned.

Turns out, I just really like cars.

I also like to write. So I basically just decided to write about cars with my life. Combine my two hobbies. I still know more about muscle cars than I do anything else, and so I get to write for the fine folks at powerTV, who write about all things American sports car. Around the same time, I managed to get another gig writing for this site, and I’ve stuck around because I’ve continued to learn more and more about green cars. Turns out, I really like green cars. Not just cars either, but high-speed trains, solar planes, and all that good stuff. It genuinely interests me. If you’re coming to this site, I’m going to assume it interests you too.

You can bet that with all the other changes going on around Gas 2.0, I've got some big changes planned for the site too.

• Car Reviews: I like driving different cars, and most of my vehicles are approaching 20 year sold (how is that for recycling?) I'm going to work on bringing you, our readers, new car reviews on a regular basis.
• Opinion Pieces: While I tend to inject my opinion into most of the blog posts, I want to do full-on Op-Ed articles. But I just don't want to force my opinion on you. I'm going to talk to people in the biz and solicit opinion pieces from them, and add some additional diversity to this blog.
• More Reader Input: This blog would be nothing without you, the readers. So expect more polls, more questions, and more chances for you to leave your input on this site. I'm also toying with the idea of reader-generated articles and opinions.
• Project Cars and Homemade Machines: By far, the best part of the car hobby is seeing the creativity and ability of regular people to turn ordinary cars into extraordinary machines. If you know someone who has a homemade electric car or you converted your Mercedes into biodiesel, I'm going to want to talk to you! And as you might imagine, being a gearhead myself, I'm going to bring you my own personal projects (with a green twist).
• And more! I'm doing this job for the love of the game. I love cars, from hybrids to Hemis, and the future of green transportation fascinates me. I want to do my best, for you readers, and I've got a veritable flotilla of ideas floating around my head. So expect plenty more to come, starting next week with our coverage of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, courtesy of Ford Motor Company.

I'm excited about the possibilities for 2011. If you've got questions, ideas, or even snarky remarks, just leave them in the comments section. Believe me, I read them all (even if I don't respond).
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