The Car Tech blog

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CBS Interactive)

CNET's Bonnie Cha gives the Navigon 7200T GPS device a thorough review, finding many advanced features and an affordable price. Along with voice command, text-to-speech, pedestrian and bicycle modes, the 7200T offers free traffic reporting. But she isn't as impressed with the device's user interface. Check out the review to see the 7200T's final rating.

Read the review.

Ford Motor made electric vehicles a centerpiece of a turnaround plan presented to Congress on Tuesday, saying that it will introduce an all-electric van for fleet use in 2010 and a sedan in 2011.

The Big Three U.S. automakers are scheduled to return to Washington, D.C., this week with the hopes of negotiating loans to forestall a collapse from lack of cash.

All three companies are seeing a continued dip in sales, but Ford is considered far better off financially than General Motors and Chrysler. Ford on Tuesday said it could be cash-flow positive from operations by 2011, but it is still requesting up to $9 billion in loans, which CEO Alan Mulally said will act as a "critical backstop or safeguard against worsening conditions, as we drive transformational change in our company."

The business plan lists cost reductions--including plant closings and the sale of its much-criticized corporate aircraft--and investments in smaller, fuel-efficient cars and a line of electric vehicles.

Its product plans calls for:

• A commitment to improve fuel efficiency across its fleet: 14 percent for 2009, 26 percent for 2012, and 36 percent for 2015--all compared with 2005 overall fleet mileage.

• At the North American International Auto Show, Ford will discuss its "vehicle electrification plan." That will include a family of hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and all-electric, or "battery electric," vehicles scheduled to debut in 2012.

Its first product will be a van-type vehicle for commercial fleets in 2010 and a sedan in 2011 with a goal of making battery-powered cars cost-effective. The cost of batteries make plug-in hybrid or all-electric vehicles significantly more expensive than gasoline engine cars.

Ford said that it will work with unnamed battery and electric-vehicle powertrain providers to bring its electric cars to market.

The company said that it intends to invest $14 billion in efficiency and it will introduce in cars its EcoBoost technology, which it unveiled at last year's North American International Auto Show.

The company also said that it is exploring the sale of its Volvo car division.

(Credit: Automotive News)

DETROIT--An electrically driven supercharger produced by Eaton Corporation will be used in a fuel cell vehicle made by Shanghai Automotive Industries Corporation for the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.

The small-scale supercharger, called a fuel cell cathode blower, has been combined with a brushless motor and moves air through the fuel cell stack, where oxygen in the air combines with hydrogen to generate the electricity that powers the vehicle.

SAIC plans to supply 20 hydrogen-powered vehicles to the 2010 event.

Eaton's Automotive Group, of suburban Detroit, supplies power train, emissions, and safety components for light and commercial vehicles.

(Source: Automotive News)

Read the full Infiniti FX50S review.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CBS Interactive)

Whether the Infiniti FX's bulbous curves can be considered beautiful is debatable, but one thing we know for certain is that--in FX50S trim--it certainly is imposing. With muscular front fenders, a large dark chrome grill, and a pair of the most aggressive headlights we've ever seen on an SUV, the 2009 Infiniti FX50S prowls the streets looking like an angry hippopotamus on 21-inch wheels.

Before you laugh, there's something you should know about the hippo. It is one of the most aggressive animals in the world, and is often regarded as the most dangerous animal in Africa and can prove quite agile and powerful when provoked. Surprisingly, despite its stocky shape a hippo can quite easily outrun an Olympic sprinter.

The same goes for the FX50S. With its mighty 5-liter V-8 and continuously damping controlled suspension, when equipped with the Sport Package, this is one big SUV that will surprise you with its speed and nimbleness. Put the seven-speed automatic transmission into the Sport mode or slap the paddle shifter for a rev-matched downshift and the FX50S will throw you back in your seat as it rockets forward with a roar.

The FX50S isn't all power and brutality. Inside the cabin is a surprise of a different kind, with luxurious leather trim and a very advanced cabin tech packages.

Read the full Infiniti FX50S review.

When I was in elementary school back in the early 1960s, nuclear energy was going to be the Greatest Thing Ever. Electricity was going to be so inexpensive that electric meters would be a thing of the past. Nuclear-powered cars would run for a year on a pellet of fuel the size of a vitamin pill. Nuclear energy would power ships, aircraft, and just about everything.

Right...With the exception of military ships--submarines and aircraft carriers--nuclear transportation has been a complete washout. Since the Three Mile Island disaster 30 years ago, nuclear power has been a bad word in the U.S., although that may change, and may have to change, in the future. Nuclear hype could be seen as one of the earliest recorded instances of vaporware.

But now we have hydrogen. The most common element in the universe. Hydrogen promises limitless clean energy. No more dependence on foreign oil. Maybe I'm an old cynic, but the hype is starting to sound familiar.

I found this article while perusing the Net earlier today.

It's an excellent article, and has many good points. Where is the hydrogen fuel coming from? Hydrogen may be the most common element in the universe, but here on planet Earth, it's locked up in, mostly, hydrocarbons--you know, like oil and natural gas. Why spend energy refining it out of natural gas when we could run cars on natural gas? Hydrogen is also a component of water, but so far, it takes more energy to liberate it from water than can be obtained from that hydrogen. Fuel cells, as currently developed, require platinum. There is a reason that platinum is expensive--there isn't much of it, at least readily available. And there is little, if any, platinum here in the U.S. Are we merely trading foreign oil for foreign platinum? (and this argument also works for the lithium for lithium ion batteries.)

High energy-density, fast-recharge batteries may be more viable than hydrogen. The necessary electric infrastructure is already mostly in place; the same can't be said of any hydrogen infrastructure--which wouldn't necessarily be analogous to the current petroleum infrastructure. Small, powerful, quickly-rechargeable batteries would be good for more than transportation. How many battery-powered devices do you have?

In recent months, I've driven three very different high-fuel economy, low-emissions "green" cars. Two were gasoline-electric hybrids: the Toyota Camry Hybrid and the Honda Civic Hybrid. The third was the Volkswagen Jetta TDI turbodiesel. How do they compare in driving experience and fuel economy?

Hybrids are environmental poster children, but diesel, green? Well, yes, if it has a modern clean diesel engine, designed and built to run on ultralow sulfur diesel fuel and equipped with the latest aftertreatment technologies. The Jetta TDI was recently named "Green Car of the Year" at the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show.

The cars were not driven back-to-back over the same roads in the same conditions, so this is not a scientific comparison. The two hybrids were regular weekly test cars, driven on local city streets, backroads, and highways in as much the same manner as is possible with two different vehicles at different times. The TDI was driven on the canyon roads, secondary roads, and freeways of the Los Angeles area during the press introduction.

2009 Toyota Camry Hybrid

(Credit: Toyota)

Toyota's full hybrid system has been refined over the years for smoother transitions between power modes and greater electric-only operation. Most of the time it's very smooth, and often silently electric up to as much as 30 mph in light-throttle driving as when starting--and accelerating slowly--or creeping in traffic. With the 2.4-liter, 147-horsepower engine and 141-hp motor working together to produce a maximum of 187 hp when needed, power is never inadequate, even for passing or acceleration at 60+ mph highway speeds. To me, the greatest drawback is the sometimes nonlinear throttle response. The electric motor kicks in to add power when the managing computer says so, and that sudden, not necessarily expected, surge can be a little annoying if you're a control freak about drivetrains. Such people probably won't be hybrid buyers, and the power surge is really no worse than what is experienced when an older automatic transmission hunts for a gear on a hill or hesitates before downshifting. Annoying but not serious. Fuel economy: EPA 33 city, 34 highway; I saw 35, not bad at all for a car this size.

2009 Honda Civic Hybrid

(Credit: Honda)

Honda's "Integrated Motor Assist" (IMA) hybrid system started life as electric motor assistance for a gasoline engine. Think electric turbocharger. More recently, it can operate at times in electric-only mode, at least according to Honda's literature. If my Civic Hybrid did that during my time driving, I failed to notice. Which means either a) I had a heavy foot (guilty) and it never did, or b) the system is very, very smooth in transition. More investigation required. On the plus side, throttle response was no different than for a gasoline engine/CVT transmission combo, predictable with no surprises. The Civic is smaller and lighter than the Camry, with a sportier suspension tuning, for a more enthusiastic driving experience. Downside: the 1.3-liter engine does most of the work, assisted by a 15kW (20 hp) electric motor for a system maximum of 110 hp and 123 lb-ft of torque. Around town low-speed performance is very good, but highway acceleration is leisurely at best. At one point on a steep highway grade,I had the car flat-out to try to maintain a 65-mph speed to keep up with traffic. It managed, barely. And I watched the then-35mpg average drop very quickly to 27. EPA ratings are 40 mpg city, 45 highway. I saw 34. Sometimes a small engine working hard uses more fuel than a more-powerful engine that is not pushed as hard.

2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Sedan

(Credit: Volkswagen)

Volkswagen has been number one in diesel car sales in the US since the days of the Rabbit Diesel in the '70s, not that that is a huge number. Current diesel technology has come at least as far as gasoline-engine technology in the past thirty years, and thanks to electronic direct fuel injection, improved combustion chamber design, turbocharging, and sophisticated in-vehicle treatment of the exhaust gases, today's TDI is as far from a slow and smoky Rabbit as a Corvette ZR1 is from the sadly de-powered disco-era 'Vette. For people whose idea of driving involves as much control as possible, the new Jetta TDI is even offered with a manual transmission (in the base model, at least) as well as the DSG automated manual. In a spirited drive through the LA canyons, trying my best to get the worst mileage possible, I could go no lower than 32 mpg with the stick. Note that no freeway or even city miles were involved, strictly backroad fun. In more sedate conditions, with the DSG, and with some freeway driving, mileage improved to 38. Drivers who tried for the best possible mileage managed 44. The EPA lists the manual at 30/41, with 29/40 for the automatic.

YMMV, of course for mileage. But high mileage and low emissions are not necessarily only hybrid attributes. The choice of hybrid or diesel is a personal preference. If you drive extensively in stop-and-go traffic, or do much city driving with time spent stopped getting 0 mpg at stoplights, condolences, and a hybrid makes sense. If you spend more time on the open road, consider one of the new-generation diesels.

Michelin's Active Wheel tech creates many exciting possibilities for vehicles of the future.

(Credit: Michelin)

Issues with battery tech aside, electric motors allow for the creation of much simpler vehicles, without the need for exhausts, cooling systems, or complex lubrication schemes. The next logical step for electric vehicles is to move the electric motors into the wheel hubs themselves, replacing driveshafts, transmissions, and differentials with much lighter wires and switches. The primary problem with this configuration is the huge jump in unsprung weight that comes with mounting heavy electric motors inside of the wheels. Michelin Tires thinks it may be a step closer to solving this problem with its Active Wheel technology, unveiled at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.

The Active Wheel system consists of the wheel and tire combination, an electric motor, an active suspension system, and disk braking system all integrated into a 95-pound package. Essentially, every element of the power train and suspension has been compacted. Smaller 14.4 pound electric motors can be used because there will be two to four of them sharing the load. Use of an electronically controlled active suspension system allows for a smaller, shorter travel suspension that can be optimized for road conditions.

The Heuliez Will is the first working prototype using Michelin's Active Wheel tech.

(Credit: Michelin)

The Heuliez Will--a prototype based on the Opel Agila--has been built in a partnership between Michelin, coachbuilder Heuliez, and the telecommunications company Orange. This front wheel drive prototype features an unsprung weight of 77 pounds per wheel on the front axle and 53 pounds per wheel on the rear axle (thanks to the omission of rear wheel motors). Michelin points out that the similarly sized Renault Clio features an unsprung weight of about 84 pounds at all axles, so the Active Wheel has already saved weight there. Offsetting the weight gained by the addition of the battery pack with the weight saved by the removal of the engine, fluids, differentials, transmission, and full fuel tank, and the final tally is a Heuliez Will that's 165 pounds lighter than the Opel Agila upon which it is based.

The Heuliez Will also seats five, features two trunks--one in the back and one in the front where the engine used to live--and thanks to the contributions of Orange, features in-car high speed Internet and live traffic monitoring and navigation. The two in-wheel electric motors deliver 41 horsepower to the front axle (can you even still call it an axle?) and up to 82 horsepower for short sprints and merging. The Heuliez Will should hit 62 mph from a dead stop in 10 seconds and will have a max speed of 87 mph. Three lithium ion battery configurations are available offering ranges of 90, 185, and 250 miles. Based on these specifications it should be pretty clear that the Heuliez Will is designed for urban living and commuting, not long road trips or performance driving.

The first batch of Heuliez Wills are testing now on the streets of France. Heuliez anticipates that they will be able to make the vehicle available in Europe, with the Active Wheel tech in place, for a limited release in 2010 and to the public by 2011 for an estimated price of 20,000 to 25,000 euros.

The Venturi Volage puts the Active Wheel tech into a more exotic package.

(Credit: Venturi)

Those looking for a few more thrills, a few more kilowatts, and a much more exotic aesthetic should look for the Venturi Volage, which also features Michelin's Active Wheel system, but with a 0-60 time of about five seconds and a top speed of 93 mph. The Volage will see a limited production run--also in Europe--in 2012 for a yet unnamed price.

(Credit: Automotive News)

BEIJING--French tire maker Michelin Group and a Chinese company have agreed to jointly develop electric power trains. If successful, the effort could vastly expand Michelin's role as an automotive supplier.

With little fanfare, Michelin and battery material supplier CITIC Guoan Mengguli., known as MGL, signed an agreement this year to develop electric power train systems for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, Qi Lu, general manager of MGL, told Automotive News China.

The system will integrate Michelin's active wheel technology with MGL's lithium ion batteries. The controllers used in the system will be jointly developed, Qi says.

The active wheel is Michelin's proprietary design for batteries and fuel cell-powered electric vehicles. It houses electric motors and suspensions inside the wheels. The battery pack and motors are linked by electric cables.

System ready by year end
Says Qi: "The electric power train system with Michelin's active wheels can be supplied to automakers in China by the year end." But he predicts future demand for the electric power train system will mainly come from overseas.

Qi also is a professor at Peking University in Beijing and head of the university's new energy material and technology laboratory.

MGL, of Beijing, is controlled by CITIC Guoan Group, a subsidiary of state-owned conglomerate China CITIC Group.

MGL was the exclusive battery supplier for 50 electric buses used in the Olympic villages during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing in August.

Michelin and MGL have developed a pure electric car fitted with the system. The car is based on the Lifan 520, a small car produced by Chongqing Lifan Automobile Co.

The Lifan 520 electric car has a maximum speed of 87 mph. A full recharge takes four hours. The car can travel 62 miles to 81 miles with a full recharge, depending on capacity of the battery pack. The batteries can be recharged about 1,000 times, Qi says.

Untested car
Qi says the batteries used in the car have passed relevant safety and quality tests carried out by China's Ministry of Science and Technology. But the Lifan car with the electric power train system has not been tested.

MGL has one battery factory in Beijing. Another one is under construction, supported by government loans, and will reach full-scale production in 2009, Qi says.

He says the new plant will be able to supply batteries to 18,000 electric cars a year.

(Source: Automotive News)

While millions of Americans watch the saga of the Big Three automakers pleading the federal government for a bailout, the finances of tiny electric car start-ups are coming under the microscope.

The Irish Independent newspaper on Sunday reported--incorrectly--that Irish utility Electricity Supply Board (ESB) invested in all-electric luxury car make Tesla Motors.

A representative from ESB on Monday said that ESB's clean-tech fund put a bit less than $20 million into a fund run by Tesla investor Vantage Point Venture Partners. ESB's money has not gone directly into Tesla, but ESB is backing other clean-tech companies including electric car firm Better Place as well as solar firms Miasole and Brightsource Energy

Although it's not involved with Tesla, ESB's investment in Better Place shows that the idea of electric utility investing in a car company is far from outlandish.

The Irish government recently launched a program designed to get 10 percent of cars running on electricity by 2020, according to reports. Denmark, Israel, and Portugal have signed on with Better Place to build a network of charging stations.

Meanwhile in the U.S., utilities are considering purchasing thousands of plug-in electric cars to jump-start the industry for battery-powered cars and to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, according to a recent report in The Wall Street Journal.

Car companies in spotlight
The topic of automakers' finances is becoming a daily topic in the news.

Top executives from the financially strapped Big Three car companies are scheduled to go back to Washington, D.C., this week to present a turnaround plan which they hope will result in a federal government loan.

Tesla itself is having cash-flow problems. The company had tried unsuccessfully to raise $100 million earlier this year. Instead, it secured $40 million in convertible debt.

But the idea of giving money to aid auto start-ups apparently has rubbed some people the wrong way. The New York Times on Sunday ran a column criticizing Tesla because it is angling for federal assistance.

Tesla hopes to secure a portion of the $25 billion set aside in 2007 for auto companies to retool. It has also applied for a loan guarantee worth up to $400 million to build a plant for its second electric car, called the Model S.

Henrik Fisker, CEO of competitor Fisker Automotive, which is making a plug-in hybrid luxury sedan called the Karma, last week said that he thinks that Fisker should get a piece of the federal assistance as well.

Tesla's argument for getting federal incentives is that it has managed to produce a much-coveted electric car--the Roadster--after having raised less than $200 million, a relatively small sum for a car company.

But federal assistance going toward a luxury car company which caters to multimillionaires and billionaires seems unjust to New York Times columnist Randall Stross.

"The program is intended to encourage automakers to improve fuel efficiency, but should it be used for a purpose like this, as the 2008 Bailout of Very, Very High-Net-Worth Individuals Who Invested in Tesla Motors Act? Can you conceive any way that federal dollars could be put at greater risk--and for no equity in return, keep in mind--to benefit fewer people?," he wrote.

On Thursday, Tesla's vice president of business development, Diarmuid O'Connell, said on the company's blog that the intent of the $25 billion "retooling" money was to spur technology innovation, rather than to keep auto companies from running out of cash.

Judging from the flow of venture-capital money, the auto sector is poised for substantial technology change. A report on Monday from Xconomy noted that investments in auto start-ups have skyrocketed in the past two years.

"It's a difficult industry, but there are opportunities. It is a $100 billion industry in which innovations are really needed, really fast," General Catalyst Partners investor Bilal Zuderi said.

Updated at 3:05 pm P.T. with corrected figure.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CBS Interactive)

Nissan just launched the latest version of the Z, the 2009 model designated as the 370Z, taking over where the 350Z left off. This new car takes styling cues from the GT-R, Nissan's new supercar, and shows improved power and performance over its predecessor. We take the car on a California road trip, one of its less suitable activities, and try it out on some winding roads, where its wide tires and downshift rev-matching features make all the difference. Cabin tech in our tester was nothing to write home about, but Nissan makes a full tech suite available, including navigation, iPod connector, and cell phone integration.

Read the review.