Category Archives: environment

German Shuffle as Ulrich Eichhorn leaves Bentley Motors for VDA, Rolf Frech leaves Porsche to Head Bentley Engineering

Frech succeeds Dr Ulrich Eichhorn, who becomes the Managing Director with the Verband der Automobilindustrie (VDA), the German Association of the Automotive Industry. VDA has seen some executive changes as German automakers continue to be outflanked by the growing green movement in Germany and across Europe, one that now sees the proposed banning of conventional automobiles from most cities and the shifting of transportation spending to water and rail. Continue reading

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The Business of Plugging In Adds EV Experts to Panels

The Center for Automotive Research is holding a timely conference – The Business of Plugging In, an electric vehicle conference – this October that will discuss the emerging plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) against a background of contentious budget debates in Washington about subsidies for automakers, global warming, emission regulations, and tax policies. Continue reading

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New Porsche Paint Shop for New 911s at Zuffenhausen

The opening of the new paint shop this week in Zuffenhausen coincides with the start of production of the new Porsche 911, arguably the most famous sports car in the world since its 1964 début. The revised 911 bodies are painted inside and out in a dust free environment at the enclosed plant, which is located in a densely populated urban area of Stuttgart. Continue reading

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European Automakers to Standardize EV Charging by 2017

At the moment and for the foreseeable future, the small numbers of owners of EVs in Europe face conflicting recharging methods. If the automakers have their way, the European Commission will endorse the concept and force it on all involved. Continue reading

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Toyota Prices 2012 Prius Plug-in Hybrid at $32,760 and $40,285

With its tiny battery, plug-in Prius has a pure electric power range of a mere 25 miles and runs off of its gasoline engine at full-throttle. This is apparently enough to qualify for a federal taxpayer subsidy under consideration via a direct tax credit of about $2,500 in these deficit ridden times. Continue reading

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IAA Frankfurt Motor Show Emphasizes Concepts and Electric Vehicles as Euro Zone Economic Crisis Threatens Automakers

The auto markets in the EC have declined for three straight years now, and 2011 is thus far following the same downward trend. It’s against this backdrop of political crisis and economic uncertainty that automakers are revealing cars at the Frankfurt Motor Show that are being dictated – or heavily influenced – by expensive EU regulations – with an emphasis on electric vehicles that will be required to meet impending EU CO2 standards. Continue reading

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EPA Grants Emergency Fuel Waiver for Flooded Pennsylvania

In a statement just issued, EPA said that in coordination with the Department of Energy (DOE), and at the request of Republican Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett (who receives funding from oil and natural gas companies), EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said that extreme and unusual supply circumstances exist. These problems are likely in EPA’s view to result in a shortage of gasoline that meets federal regulations. The federal waiver will help provide adequate supply of gasoline in the affected area until normal supply to the region can be restored. Continue reading

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Volkswagen Opens Engine Rebuilding Plant in China with FAW

While all major automakers are scrambling to establish and maintain new vehicle manufacturing and sales in China, the so-called aftermarket is not being pursued with the same vigor, repeating the same mistake U.S. automakers made as their home market expanded 100 years ago. Continue reading

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Flames Instead of Primer in New GM Paint Process for Plastic

Emissions from the painting of automobiles have been steadily decreasing under environmental laws as a variety of paint process technologies including water based paints and other new materials that eliminate volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other emissions, electric coating methods and the now the almost exclusive use of robots to precisely spray coatings have become standard. Continue reading

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Bosch To Build Pilot Line to Make Lithium-Ion Batteries

Currently, lithium ion battery technology is dominated by Asian firms, in China, Japan and Korea. U.S. and European automakers are scrambling to increase their expertise in hybrid and electric vehicle technologies because of increasingly stringent government regulations that favor hybrid and electric vehicles. Continue reading

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Tiny Three-Cylinder VW Up! to Debut at IAA Frankfurt

Volkswagen has released pictures of the production version of the tiny VW Up, which last appeared as an electric car concept two years ago at the IAA or Frankfurt Motor Show. The two-door, four seat small car at 3.54 meters is seven inches smaller than the Mini, and will also compete with Alfa Romeo MiTo, Fiat 500 and in Europe the Toyota iQ. No word on whether the VW Up will come to North America. Continue reading

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Ford and Toyota to Develop a New Hybrid System for Light Trucks and SUVs as well as Future Telematics Standards

Both companies of course are heavily invested in fuel thirsty larger trucks, with Ford’s best selling vehicle the F-Series pickup rated at 16 mpg on the EPA city test cycle. The F-Series has been the U.S.’s best selling truck for the past 34 years with year-to-date sales of 313,000 units. Toyota before the Great Recession invested billions in full-size trucks and SUVs. Both the Tundra pickup and Sequoia full-size SUV have been sales disasters. Continue reading

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Department of Interior Breaks U.S. Laws But Gets Taxpayer Funded Pass from Environmental Protection Agency Fine

The settlement, which basically grants DOI immunity from further prosecution for its illegal actions, is the latest example of the federal bureaucracy protecting itself from itself. If a private corporation were involved in this matter huge punitive fines would have been levied and the prosecution of executives would have been a distinct possibility. Continue reading

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Amerigon Gets Taxpayer Funds for Thermo Energy Recovery

Amerigon will share the $8 million grant with project partners including Ford, BMW of North America, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)/California Institute of Technology, and Faurecia Emissions Controls Technologies. Continue reading

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Stanley Cup of Fuel Economy? Canada vs U.S. in EcoCar2

The competition employs Canadian engineering students, together with 13 U.S. university teams, to explore ways to reduce the environmental impact of vehicles without “compromising” performance, safety and consumer acceptability. Continue reading

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