Chevrolet to Increase Volt Production Capacity by 50 Percent

General Motors today said that thanks to strong public interest in the Chevrolet Volt, the 340-mile extended range electric vehicle, it will increase U.S. production capacity of the groundbreaking new car by 50 percent, from 30,000 units to 45,000 units, in 2012.

The announcement came as U.S. President Barack Obama toured the Detroit-Hamtramck facility, where the Volt is being produced now for sale later this year.

“The Chevrolet Volt provides drivers with the latest technology, outstanding innovation, and something no other electric vehicle can provide – peace of mind,” said Edward E. Whitacre, Jr., GM Chairman and CEO. “We are very proud to host the President of the United States at this plant, where the future of the American automobile industry is being built today by the men and women of General Motors.”

The expanded U.S. production capacity is the latest in a series of positive developments for the Chevrolet Volt. This week, participating Chevrolet dealers in launch markets began taking customer orders for the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, following the release of retail and lease pricing. The brand also recently announced unprecedented battery and vehicle limited warranties to bring value and peace of mind to Volt customers. And the number of U.S. launch markets for the vehicle recently was raised from three to seven.

GM has said it expects demand for the Volt to exceed the 10,000 units it will build between its launch and the end of 2011. In the past few weeks, more than 25,000 people have joined the Chevrolet Volt enthusiast list. More than 73,000 people have registered to receive product information from GM's Chevrolet Volt site, spokesman David Darovitz said.

On Tuesday, the day GM released the Volt's pricing, the site saw a 700 percent increase in visits and a 1,200 percent increase in registrations compared with the site's daily average, Darovitz said.

The Volt offers a total driving range of about 340 miles and is powered by electricity at all times. For up to the first 40 miles, the vehicle drives gas- and tailpipe-emissions-free using electricity stored in its 16-kWh lithium-ion battery. When the Volt’s battery runs low, a gas-powered, engine/generator seamlessly operates to extend the driving range another 300 miles on a full tank.

The Detroit-Hamtramck plant received $336 million in new investment to prepare for production of the Volt, part of more than $700 million GM has invested in eight Michigan facilities to support Volt production since 2008. This includes a 33,000 square-foot battery systems lab in Warren; a battery assembly facility in Brownstown Township; and supporting engine and stamping operations in Grand Blanc, Bay City, and three plants in Flint.

Besides direct GM jobs, the Volt has helped spur additional supplier employment and investment. Earlier this month, battery cell supplier LG Chem/Compact Power Inc. broke ground on a $300 million, 650,000 square-foot plant in Holland, Mich., to support Volt production, creating 400 jobs. In addition, the Volt helped start an electrification trend. Since its debut in January 2007, other automakers have announced 30 plug-in hybrid or electric vehicles.

Small Roof Top PV Solar System Nets 2,600 EV Miles per month

A family in Aurora Colorado have installed a 5.59 kW photovoltaic solar system on the roof of their residential garage and are reporting that in it's first month the system has generated 650 kWh worth of electricity, equivalent to 2,600 miles (@ 250 wh/mi) of driving in a plug-in electric car.

Calculating PV costs against utility power savings results in fair long pay-back periods. This particular system cost $8,500 and generates 650 kWh per month. At a standard utility rate of $0.10 kWh the pay back is approx 10 years.

However, when using a roof top PV system to recharge an EV it's a different order of magnitude. The Colorado family estimate $390 worth of gas cost savings (assuming $3 per gallon and 20 m.p.g) per month. The pay-back on the purchase price of the same PV system becomes less than 2 years or 1/5th the time compared to standard utility rates. If you live in a country with higher petrol prices than the US, or a feed-in tariff, the pay-back time is even shorter.

Fundamentally the purchase of a PV system is equal to paying up front for several decades worth of free motoring. A photovoltaic solar system will last 30 years + providing free energy that literally falls out of the sky. Tesla Motors estimate 20% of customers who buy a Roadster also have a roof-top PV system.

BP oil spill will boost electric car sales

The Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster will hasten the adoption of electric vehicles, a leading car executive says.

Nissan’s senior vice-president of product planning, Andy Palmer, says the spill highlights the potential pitfalls of oil dependency.

“Any kind of crisis can move the needle, whether it’s price hikes or regrettably, terrorism,” he says.

“Every time you see a degree of instability it tends to help us on EV, no doubt,” he says.

“I think no one thing is going to change consumer behaviour overnight but it draws attention to the difficulties of carbon-based fuel,” he says.

He says the interest in Nissan’s upcoming Leaf electric car has been “astonishing”, with the vehicle essentially sold out until well into the second half of next year.

“We have 23,500 orders in the bank and we haven’t announced the pricing in Europe, so that’s just the US, Japan and some blind orders from Europe,” he says.

And he says that the Australian government, which has shown little interest in EVs to date, is beginning to come around.

Mr Palmer visited Australia earlier this year to speak with the federal and state governments and was encouraged by the reception he received. “We are getting a response from the federal government… we do have a level of interest and I do see some signs that Australia will be one of the next serious countries that we are looking at,” he says.

“From a demographic point of view, Australia’s perfect [for EVs]. Most of the houses have got garages, most of you have got two cars and most of the second car’s range is relatively low mileage – you’ve just written the spec for an EV, frankly,” he says.

He says that while the main advantage to Australia from EVs would be CO2 reduction, they would also play a major role in improving air quality in big cities such as Sydney and Melbourne.

“The car doesn’t emit CO2, which means you’re not emitting CO2 in a city, where most people live; moreover you’re not emitting any other noxious gases either. You’re cleaning up the environments where people live,” he says.

Your Oil Dollars at Work

In April the Qatari royal family spent $2.3 Billion to buy Harrods, the high end UK department store. Now they'll have to fork over $800 in fines to remove wheel clamps from supercars worth $2.3 Million that two family members parked illegally out front of the store.

The story about these two cars alerted us to the fact that central London has become a weekly supercar show during the summer months with literally hundreds of exotics ranging from the pictured Koenigsegg CCXR “Special One” to a half dozen Bugatti Veyron, including the ultra exclusive '15-of' Sang Noir through to a dozen or so garden variety Lamborghini Murcielago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce, all wearing Qatar number plates.

Not bad for a country that was a former pearl-fishing center, was one of the poorest Gulf states and has less than half the population of New Zealand. They are now one of the richest Gulf countries, in a region full of rich countries, thanks to the exportation of oil.

The London supercar parade is a graphic illustration of what the Washington Post calls “The biggest transfer of wealth in history”.

Because we are all limited to using an Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) for propulsion, we are forced to consume 6x more energy than is needed to move a car down the road. Good if you're in the business of selling oil, not so good if you just want to drive to work.

Each time you fill your car's fuel tank remind yourself that every ICE powered car consuming all this Arab oil is only 15% energy efficient. The direct result is that $0.85 cents out of every dollar you spend at the fuel bowser gets converted into waste heat as an unavoidable side effect of the extremely inefficient internal combustion process.

On first appearances it 'looks' like Volkswagen (owners of Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Audi etc) are doing fairly well out of this transfer of wealth too, until you learn that Qatar Holdings, the same company that bought Harrods, also own 12.3% of the VW group.

The Qatari royal family members seem to be keeping it in-house, mostly buying and promoting their family owned brands. We can be fairly certain none of them would be caught dead parading around London in something like a Tesla Roadster, especially one with 'LOL OIL' number plates.

Racing Carrera 124 classic cars-video

A short video of a night of racing with my friends, we put the Carrera classic 1/24 cars shod with Ortmann tires on a wood track.

New Ninco September releases *updated

Lamborghini Supercar EV Concept

Designer Flavio Adriani has created the Lamborghini Concept EV as a tribute to the man who changed everything about sportcars, Ferrucio Lamborghini.

The design, the lines, the impact of the car derive from a combination of the Diablo and Gallardo. The concept is not just about passion for Lamborghini, it also is equipped with the latest technology regarding the drive train, pollution, energy saving and passenger safety.

The car has an electric drive train with high powered in-wheel motors in each of the 4 wheels that allow active vehicle dynamics control and maximum regenerative braking.

The battery pack is mounted low within the rear diffuser and recharging is available via plug-in and/or solar panels mounted over the engine compartment. These panels are V shaped, giving the car a more aggressive look.

The designer also fitted a panel protecting passengers against low frequency radiation. This radiation comes from mobile phones, antennas and other wireless devices. These radiations have proven to be dangerous to human health bringing headaches, cancer and more.

For Flavio Adriani, the greatest challenge designing this electric Lamborghini was, how to bring the amazing sound of the engine that has been removed. The solution he found are wind turbines. The air enters the tubes through the front bumper and makes its way to the central turbine which gives it a jet engine sound.

The Nissan LEAF On the Road!

In this week’s episode of Green Overdrive Katie Fehrenbacher takes the Nissan Leaf for a quick test drive.

Nissan’s Mark Perry demonstrates a few more software functions on the dash display. We have seen the battery range graphic overlay on the GPS map previously but something new is the calculator that estimates range with or without energy intensive accessories like the A/C on.

Scientists say global warming is continuing

Scientists from around the world are providing even more evidence of global warming, one day after President Barack Obama renewed his call for climate legislation.

"A comprehensive review of key climate indicators confirms the world is warming and the past decade was the warmest on record," the annual State of the Climate report declares.

Compiled by more than 300 scientists from 48 countries, the report said its analysis of 10 indicators that are "clearly and directly related to surface temperatures, all tell the same story: Global warming is undeniable."

Concern about rising temperatures has been growing in recent years as atmospheric scientists report rising temperatures associated with greenhouse gases released into the air by industrial and other human processes. At the same time, some skeptics have questioned the conclusions.

The new report, the 20th in a series, focuses only on global warming and does not specify a cause.

"The evidence in this report would say unequivocally yes, there is no doubt," that the Earth is warming, said Tom Karl, the transitional director of the planned NOAA Climate Service.

Deke Arndt, chief of the Climate Monitoring Branch at the National Climatic Data Center, noted that the 1980s was the warmest decade up to that point, but each year in the 1990s was warmer than the '80s average.

That makes the '90s the warmest decade, he said.

But each year in the 2000s has been warmer than the '90s average, so the first 10 years of the 2000s is now the warmest decade on record.

The new report noted that continuing warming will threaten coastal cities, infrastructure, water supply, health and agriculture.

"At first glance, the amount of increase each decade — about a fifth of a degree Fahrenheit — may seem small," the report said.

"But," it adds, "the temperature increase of about 1 degree Fahrenheit experienced during the past 50 years has already altered the planet. Glaciers and sea ice are melting, heavy rainfall is intensifying and heat waves are becoming more common and more intense."

Last month was the warmest June on record and this year has had the warmest average temperature for January-June since record keeping began, NOAA reported last week.

And a study by Princeton University researchers released Monday suggested that continued warming could cause as many as 6.7 million more Mexicans to move to the United States because of drought affecting crops in their country.

The new climate report, released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and published as a supplement to the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, focused on 10 indicators of a warming world, seven which are increasing and three declining.

Rising over decades are average air temperature, the ratio of water vapor to air, ocean heat content, sea surface temperature, sea level, air temperature over the ocean and air temperature over land.

Indicators that are declining are snow cover, glaciers and sea ice.

The 10 were selected "because they were the most obviously related indicators of global temperature," explained Peter Thorne of the Cooperative Institute for Climate and Satellites, who helped develop the list when at the British weather service, known as the Met Office.

"What this data is doing is, it is screaming that the world is warming," Thorne concluded.

More

Spa 24 qualifying results

2008 FIA GT2 Champion Gianmaria Bruni took the overall pole position for the 2010 Total 24 Hours of Spa in the AF Corse ALD Team Vitaphone Ferrai 430. On a drying track the second of the three qualifying sessions proved to the deciding factor, with Bruni setting a best lap of 2m22.403. The time was just 0.146 seconds faster than Dirk Werner's best in the BMW Motorsport BMW M3, his lap of 2m22.549 proving to be the best in the GTN Class and good enough for a front row start. The third place went to the nr50 Phoenix Racing Audi R8 LMS, with Marcel Fässler posting a 2m22.807 lap and will line up on the second row alongside the nr51 Phoenix Racing Audi. The GT4 class pole went to the RJN Motorsport Nissan 370Z of Alex Buncombe who set the best time in the final third session.

News used with permission from GT2Europe.com.

Car Town Facebook App -- Autoblog

Car Town Facebook App -- Autoblog Facebook has a new game that probably will appeal to guys who are maybe a bit bored with farming or cooking... Car Town is already online!

http://apps.facebook.com/cartown/

Spa 24Hours TV schedule

Download the worldwide TV schedule for the 24Hours of Spa at this link. Programming is July 29-August 1. According to the schedule in the US Bloomberg TV will broadcast the race "live"... looking at the Bloomberg TV schedule on the website you see that there's normal programming sched'ed... hmmmm.


Live video at this link... hopefully.
http://www.total24hours.com/24h-spa/nl/videolive2.cfm

Porsche 918 Spyder approved for production

Porsche 918 Spyder approved for production!!! The car supposedly will get 78-mpg and lap the 'Ring in 7.5 minutes! Yikes, it seems like somewhere other car companies have missed something...

New Carrera GO!!! and D143 coming to North America

Pix of some new GO!!! and D143 cars that are coming to North America.


Dakar BMW X3-GO!!!Porsche GT3-GO!!!
Porsche GT3 GO!!! and D143
Ferrari 599XX-GO!!! and D143
Ferrari 599XX GO!!!
Cars "Hook" (Mater)-GO!!!
Cars "Sally"-GO!!!
Porsche RS Spyder-GO!!!
Ferrari "Alonso"-GO!!! and D143
Mercedes DTM "Lauda"-GO!!!
Renault F1-GO!!! and D143
McLaren Mercedes F1-GO!!! and D143

Nissan LEAF will carry an 8 years or 100,000 mile warranty

Nissan LEAF first will be available to consumers in December, in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Tennessee. These areas are home to The EV Project – the largest electric vehicle and infrastructure deployment ever undertaken.

The EV Project is a result of a partnership with charging infrastructure provider ECOtality and partially funded by a grant from the U.S. Dept. of Energy. Customers in these first five launch states, who represent more than 55 percent of total Nissan LEAF reservations, will be able to place firm orders for the Nissan LEAF starting in August.

Nissan LEAF will be introduced to Texas and Hawaii shortly thereafter, in January 2011; North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Washington DC, Virginia, Maryland, South Carolina and Alabama follow in April 2011; and be rolled-out to the balance of the nation beginning in Fall 2011 with availability in all markets nationwide by the end of that year.

"We are pleased to see so many people making a choice for a zero-emission future by placing reservations for the Nissan LEAF," said Brian Carolin, senior vice president, Sales and Marketing, Nissan North America. "Consumer feedback and market readiness have been key drivers in developing our phased rollout. Nissan is able to target areas of customer demand for early launch, while continuing to work in future markets to ensure the continued success of electric vehicles."

Nissan North America also is informing its consumers that the lithium-ion battery pack that powers the Nissan LEAF will carry a warranty of 8 years or 100,000 miles – matching U.S. market competitive conditions.

Consumers who have reserved the Nissan LEAF online will be invited to place orders through their dealer for the vehicle in advance of market roll-out timing, allowing time for consumers to select a dealer and assess home charging needs. Nissan is continuing to take reservations for the Nissan LEAF through its website, www.NissanUSA.com. Interested consumers are encouraged to place a reservation, which entails a $99 fully refundable fee to secure a spot on the list to place an order.

The reservations process has educated Nissan about more than just geographic distribution. Some information we've learned about future Nissan LEAF drivers includes:


* Favorite color: The favorite color of Nissan LEAF owners is blue. More than 30 percent of reservations are for blue Nissan LEAF electric cars. Silver is a close second, at about 26 percent. The remaining reservations are close to evenly split among red, black and white.

* Trim level: About 75 percent of Nissan LEAF orders are for the SL trim level, which adds a rearview monitor, solar panel spoiler, fog lights, and automatic headlights.

* Home and Parking: About 75 percent of people who placed reservations own a single-family home. About 68 percent have attached garages, while an additional 18 percent have detached garages or carports. Home ownership and dedicated parking are important factors for Nissan LEAF drivers who plan to charge their vehicles at home.

* Purchase time: About 67 percent of Nissan LEAF reservations holders have indicated that they'd be ready to purchase or lease a Nissan LEAF within one year of placing the reservation. An additional 24 percent indicated they would be ready in one to two years.

* Interests: Several primary interests are inspiring people to order a Nissan LEAF. Cited interests include energy independence (35 percent); environmental consciousness (34 percent); and cost/fuel economy (20 percent).

Chevrolet Begins Taking Volt Orders Priced from $33,500

Starting today, participating Chevrolet dealers in launch markets will begin taking customer orders for the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, the industry’s first electric vehicle with extended-range capability.

Chevrolet is so confident in the overall value of the Volt that the brand will offer a lease program on the Volt with a monthly payment as low as $350 for 36 months at Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price with $2,500 due at lease signing, including security deposit based on current conditions, which could vary at time of delivery. The benefit of the $7,500 tax credit is included in the reduced lease payment, with the tax credit going to the lessor. The Volt’s MSRP will start at $41,000 ($33,500 net of the full federal tax credit, which ranges from $0-$7,500) including a destination freight charge of $720. Customer deliveries of the Chevrolet Volt are scheduled to begin in launch markets late this year with initial production limited.

“The Chevrolet Volt will be the best vehicle in its class…because it’s in a class by itself,” said Joel Ewanick, vice president of U.S. marketing for General Motors, who made the announcement at the Plug-In 2010 conference. “No other automaker offers an electrically driven vehicle that can be your everyday driver, to take you wherever, whenever. The Volt will be packed with premium content and innovation, standard.”

The Volt will be initially available to Chevrolet customers in California, New York, Michigan, Connecticut, Texas, New Jersey and the Washington D.C. area. To be among the first to purchase a Volt, customers can visit their nearest participating Chevrolet Volt dealer. A Volt dealer locator will be available later today at http://www.getmyvolt.com. The dealer will begin the order process, which will be followed up by contact from a dedicated Volt advisor who will be available to answer any questions and keep the customer apprised of the progress of their order.

The Chevrolet Volt is the only electric vehicle that can operate under a range of weather climates and driving conditions with little concern of being stranded by a depleted battery. Volt has a total driving range of about 340 miles and is powered by electricity at all times. For up to the first 40 miles, the Volt drives gas- and tailpipe-emissions-free using electricity stored in its 16-kWh lithium-ion battery. When the Volt’s battery runs low, a gas powered range-extending engine/generator seamlessly operates to extend the driving range another 300 miles on a full tank.

Depending on their tax situation, Volt owners can qualify for up to $7,500 in U.S. Federal income tax credit, as well as other potential state and local tax credits, depending on location. Owners in certain states may qualify for the added convenience of High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane access.

While the Chevrolet Volt will come standard with a 120-volt charge cord that will provide owners with the ability to charge their Volt directly from a standard home electrical outlet, a total of 4,400 Volt buyers in launch markets could be eligible for a free 240-volt charging station, including home installation. The installations are part of a program developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to install approximately 15,000 240-volt home charging stations across the U.S.

Tesla Motors sells first Roadster in Australia

Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Motors Inc. said Monday it delivered its first vehicle in Australia, marking its entry into that market.

The company, which sold stock to the public for the first time earlier this month, said it sold its Roadster electric sports car to Australian technology entrepreneur Simon Hackett.

The Roadster, which starts at more than $100,000 and is Tesla's only vehicle for sale, is now approved for Australian roadways and available to customers there, the company said. The car goes from zero to 100km in less than four seconds, Tesla says, and can travel more than 380 kilometers on a single charge. The Roadster plugs into any conventional socket and can be charged with solar, hydro or wind energy.

Tesla says it has sold more than 1,200 Roadsters to customers in at least 28 countries.

Company shares were selling for $20.90 in afternoon trading.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car to buy 500 Nissan Leafs

Enterprise Rent-A-Car said Tuesday it plans to buy 500 electric cars from Nissan starting in January.

With a retail price of more than $30,000 for each Nissan LEAF, Enterprise plans to spend an estimated $15 million on its new electric vehicle fleet.

The St. Louis-based car rental giant said it will initially roll out the Nissan LEAFs, which use no gasoline and do not produce greenhouse gas emissions, in eight markets: Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz.; Knoxville and Nashville, Tenn.; San Diego; Los Angeles; Portland, Ore.; and Seattle.

Enterprise is a major rental car company in the Sacramento region. The state leases cars from Enterprise for workers.

Enterprise said it is introducing the Japanese electric vehicles to a limited number of branches so it can properly train its employees to show customers how to use and charge the vehicles.

The cars can be charged using a standard 110-volt home outlet, or a 220-volt or 480-volt commercial charging station. Most electric vehicles can travel about 100 miles on a single charge, accommodating the travel habits of a daily commuter who drives an average of about 40 miles a day.

Beginning in November, Enterprise said it will install charging stations at some of its locations, including several of the Enterprise “hybrid branches,” or almost 100 designated locations that offer hybrids and other environmentally friendly rental options in 30 markets.

Enterprise said it plans to offer customers electric vehicles from other manufacturers as they become available.

“As a company that owns and operates the world's largest fleet of passenger vehicles, we have a vested interest and a history of working with manufacturers to integrate alternative-powered vehicles into our fleet,” said Lee Broughton, director of sustainability for Enterprise Holdings, which owns and operates Enterprise Rent-A-Car as well as the Alamo Rent A Car and National Car Rental brands. “With airport and neighborhood locations within 15 miles of 90 percent of the U.S. population, our Enterprise Rent-A-Car offices are uniquely positioned to test the market viability of new alternative fuel technologies like the electric vehicle with daily commuters nationwide.”

Through its regional subsidiaries, Enterprise Holdings operates the world’s largest fleet of fuel-efficient vehicles, including almost 7,000 gas/electric hybrid vehicles.

Over the past several years, the Taylor family and their companies have contributed or pledged more than $120 million to environmental initiatives.

"Love the Beast"

There are certain movies that grab the attention of car fans and slot car fans "LeMans" is one of those enduring movies that comes up during any conversation about movies that slotters love and watch regularly. "Love the Beast" a documentary by actor Eric Bana is a movie that I think will be included in future conversations. To say Bana is a car guy is an understatement. He's owned the Ford Falcon XB since he was a teenager, and since then he's loved that car and raced it with his buddies. Over the years Bana has built, raced, rebuilt, etc that car many times. He's had the good sense to keep the car and not gotten rid of it as he's gone on with his life... sadly I'm sure there are many of us who used to own a truly cool car should have kept their first (car) love.

In the movie we learn a bit of history of the Falcon. The car isn't one that many American's would know, but would find quite familiar. It was the car driven by Mad Max and is a similar car to the Mustang of the early 1970's. Sort of a cross between a Mustang and a Torino... all muscle.

Automotive fan royalty like Jany Leno and Jeremy Clarkson appear in the movie along with Dr. Phil... yes, that Dr. Phil, to talk Bana off the ledge so-to-speak late in the movie. I won't reveal too much but the discussions about what the car means to Bana and his friends and to his life in general are as revealing as they are applicable to any car lovers life.

Cars are living things... car lovers get that. This movie explains that fact better than any other movie ever. Yes... ever.

If you've never loved a car, or just see cars as a means of transportation you WON'T get this... but if you're reading this review here, you understand what I'm saying.

In college I read a book called "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", that book's message was of the interconnectedness of everything in a person's life. A car isn't just a car, it's the "stuff" that binds relationships between friends who share a love of a car (or love of a hobby like slot cars too maybe). I don't want to get all Deepak Chopra on folks here but this movie has a lot to offer not only on a superficial way of an interesting story about building a race car, but there's a moving story as well about friendship and the relationship between a father and son. Yeah... it's worth your time on so many levels.

Movie trailer:
Love the Beast

This movie is not only available for sale from Amazon and from Netflix streaming via the internet.

Dave Kennedy
Publisher, Slot Car News

All New Cars Sold In China to be Mild Hybrid by 2012

General Manager of Chery New Energy Company, Yuan Tao, said Thursday that relevant authorities are now planning to issue a policy on hybrid vehicle technology, requiring all new cars to be equipped with the BSG hybrid system for fuel efficiency.

An industry insider from Dongfeng motor confirmed the statement, and said implementation should happen by 2012.

The BSG is a mild hybrid technology that can save about five percent on fuel. Unlike the electric vehicle technology, the BSG is just an innovation of traditional gas-diesel engine and can boost fuel efficiency. Its cost is also relatively low. According to Dongfeng Motor, under mass production, it only costs 1,000 yuan ($147.5) per car to be equipped with the BSG system.

Chinese domestic fuel consumption in 2008 was 540 million tons of gasoline and 520 million tons of diesel. If all the vehicles had been equipped with the BSG system, the annual fuel consumption would have decreased by five million tons.

The Mr. Yuan also said, "Both plug-in and fuel battery technologies belong to electricallization. The traditional engine technology should not be ignored for it will continue to play a leading role in a long time."


Global Times

Cars in your Dreams

As I was sat in my office working, a trio of exotic cars drove past my window. My colleague and myself started to talk about our dream cars and we came up with a list of cars we would like to own if we could and why. I thought that you might be interested in my selection. The five listed are cars which unfortunately, unless I win a lottery, will never be able to own. Still… one can dream…

1. Lamborghini Reventon

Driving in the Lamborghini Reventon is what I can only imagine to be the perfect driving experience. The two-seater open top is the dream vehicle of choice for many a thrill seeker. It has a luxury sleek style and with a 6.5l twelve-cylinder engine it can zoom from 0 to 62mph in only 3.4 seconds.

2. Lotus Exige S 240

This masterpiece of English manufacturing is one of the most sought after cars available today. With a fixed-roof, this sleek sports car is totally suitable for everyday street driving, but can reach top speeds of 150mph and from a standstill 100mph comes up within 4.1 seconds. Sadly, this 1.8 litre is out of reach for many, with a price tag of around £45,000, though it is still one of the most affordable dream cars around.

3. Ferrari Enzo

Ferrari is perhaps the most famous super car producer in the world and the Enzo certainly lives up to expectations. The high performance sports car has an extremely beautiful body and comes in Ferrari red. As well as a carbon fibre body, this dream machine features a V12 engine with four valves per cylinder.

4. Aston Martin DB9

No wonder Aston Martins are a favourite with 007. The DB9 is a high-class automobile with a beautifully sleek design. The Grand Tourer is a favourite among racing fanatics and those who wish to drive around feeling the ‘bees knees.’ Achieving 0-60 in 4.6 seconds, no wonder its one of the most desirable cars out there.

5. Bugatti Veryon

No surprises here that the fastest driving car in the world enters my top five. Many a man’s dream is to own the Bugatti, but with a price tag of £1,150,000 unfortunately it's not remotely affordable by many of us mere mortals. The car can reach a top speed of 253.2mph, which reflects in the price. Despite the price tag, the Bugatti has been voted one of the most desirable cars on the market, as well as being arguably, the fastest in the world.

These are my top five cars and unfortunately it is very unlikely I will ever be able to own any of them. Of course, this doesn’t mean you’ll never be able to experience the thrill of driving one. Try searching for Red Letter Days Discount Vouchers or Red Letter Days Discount Codes on the net and see what deals you can find.

Many ‘Red Letter Day’ trips include driving some of the world’s most supreme super cars. They also make good presents, just imagine how you would feel if you opened a birthday card, only to find you have been given the opportunity to drive one or more of the most inspirational and breathtaking cars ever to have been manufactured.

So what are your dream cars?

Wolf Henzler races slots!

Falken Tires Porsche RSR driver and Porsche factory driver Wolf Henzler talks about racing slots as a kid... and he's planning to get that box of slots out when he gets back home in Germany and race those slots again!

Lizards win GT at Northeast Grand Prix

July 24, 2010 – Lakeville, Conn. – Patrick Long and Joerg Bergmeister battled debilitating heat and grueling traffic at today's Northeast Grand Prix to take the GT class win and retake the championship lead. This was Bergmeister's fifth consecutive win at Lime Rock, fourth with the Lizards and third together with Long. It's the duo's third win this year. In the No. 44 Porsche, Darren Law and Seth Neiman finished a strong seventh in the thirteen-car GT field.

Starting from the pole, Long kept the lead at the start, and over the next 20 minutes held off the No. 62 Risi Ferrari which had quickly moved into P2. Narrowly avoiding an early race incident when car spun in front of him, Long held the lead and stayed out of trouble, pitting under the first caution for a short fuel top up. Patrick was back out again quickly, still ahead of the No. 62 (which had also pitted). Once the field resettled after the first round of pit stops, Patrick was now P3 and the No. 61 Risi Ferrari and No. 40 Robertson Ford, which did not pit during the first round of stops, moved to P1 and P2, with the No. 62 in P4. Just minutes later, a major incident on track claimed multiple cars, including the No. 40 Ford. The No. 62 was also involved in an incident which sent them back to the pits and an early retirement.

45 minutes into the race, now in second, Patrick pitted for driver change to Joerg, tires and fuel. The No. 61 also pitted, but required a longer fuel because they had not pitted under the first yellow, and Joerg was able to beat them out of the pits to gain a position. The No. 92 and No. 90 BMWs did not stop during the second yellow, taking first and second, with Patrick now in third and the No. 61 in P4. Over the next 45 minutes, Joerg kept the pressure on the BMWs, which finally pitted under green for their final pit stop of the race, moving Joerg back into the lead.

1 hour and 45 minutes in, Joerg pitted under green for tires, fuel and driver change to Patrick. It would be the final pit stop for the No. 45. A fast stop allowed Patrick to come out ahead of the BMWs. The No. 61 Risi Ferrari, which had been in fourth, did not pit and took the lead.

With 45 minutes left to go, the No. 61 pitted for their final stop, and Patrick retook the lead. Over the next 45 minutes, Long battled to hold off the BMWs who were running second and third. Long described his last stint, "Joerg had a flawless stint and turned over a clean, solid car to me to finish. By the time I took the wheel for my second stint, our strategy had gotten us the provisional lead. My job was to maintain the gap. Navigating the traffic was unbelievably difficult. I had to shift from trying to hold the gap to just keeping the BMWs behind me. Traffic became my friend -- each time I worked through a pack of cars I was able to increase the gap. Then the BMW just behind me would close it again on the straights. But we were better in the corners. I knew I just had to fight to the end and it became all about traffic management. Passing for position in this race would have been really tough. This victory came through our pit work, strategy and racecraft in traffic. Now we need to keep the momentum through the end of the season."
Bergmeister added, "The car was handling really well today. When I was driving alone or when there was a gap to the BMWs in front of me things were easy to maintain. But when I got close to them, temps went up and we picked up some understeer. But I knew that we were ahead of the others on our fuel strategy and I didn't want to take any risks to make sure I turned the car over to Patrick in one piece. Thanks to the crew who did a great job in both giving us a fast car and getting us every advantage they could in the pits."

In the No. 44, Seth Neiman started twelfth on the grid and ran a solid stint, turning the car over to Darren nearing the one-hour mark, now in P10. Law focused his stint on gaining ground and avoiding the many incidents that claimed nearly a third of the overall field. The No. 44 finished seventh in class.

Law explained, "We didn't have the fastest car out there today but it was a very consistent race car. We had no issues and as always the crew did a great job. It was nice to be able to finish 7th in such a tough field and get some points on the board for the No. 44. Traffic was incredibly hectic. You had to take risks to get by every single car. One piece of traffic could lose you five car lengths on a single lap. It's a testament to all of the drivers who made it through because there were so many problems out there. It was very hard to make the right judgment all on when you should pass. And adding to that, the heat and humidity were just grueling -- staying properly hydrated was half of the battle."

With this win, Bergmeister and Long move to the lead in the GT championship.

Up next for the Lizards is Mid-Ohio, August 7.

News used with permission from Flying Lizard Motorsports. Photos copyright 2010 Dave Kennedy/Slot Car News.

Solar powered UAV goes down in history as first "eternal plane"

The solar-powered craft completed two weeks of non-stop flight above a US Army range in Arizona before being commanded to make a landing.

The Qinetiq company which developed Zephyr said the UAV had nothing to prove by staying in the air any longer.

It had already smashed all endurance records for an unpiloted vehicle before it touched down on Friday.

"We are just really delighted with the performance," said project manager Jon Saltmarsh.

"It's the culmination of a lot of years of effort from a huge number of really talented scientists and engineers," he told BBC News.

Zephyr took off from the Yuma Proving Ground on Friday, 9 July.

After only 31 hours in the air, it had bettered the official world record for a long-duration flight by a drone; but then it kept on going, unencumbered by the need to take on the liquid fuel that sustains traditional aircraft.

Clear skies at 60,000ft delivered copious amounts of sunshine to its amorphous silicon solar arrays, charging its lithium-sulphur batteries and keeping its two propellers turning.

At night, Zephyr lost some altitude but the energy stored in the batteries was more than sufficient to maintain the plane in the air.

Zephyr is set to be credited with a new world endurance record (336 hours, 24 minutes) for an unmanned, un-refuelled aircraft - provided a representative of the world air sports federation, who was present at Yuma, is satisfied its rules have been followed properly.

Its fortnight in the sky easily beats the 30 hours, 24 minutes, set by Northrop Grumman's RQ-4A Global Hawk in 2001.

Zephyr has also exceeded the mark set for a manned, non-stop, un-refuelled flight, set in 1986 by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, who stayed aloft for nine days (216 hours), three minutes. Their flight in the Voyager craft went around the world.

Profile raising

Jon Saltmarsh said the UAV, which has a 22.5m wingspan, was no longer an experimental plane and was now ready to begin its operational life.

The fact that Zephyr completed its demonstration during the Farnborough International Airshow - which takes place on the doorstep of the Qinetiq company - will have done wonders for the craft's profile.

Solar-powered high-altitude long-endurance (Hale) UAVs are expected to have a wide range of applications.

The military will want to use them as reconnaissance and communications platforms. Civilian and scientific programmes will equip them with small payloads for Earth observation duties.

Their unique selling point is their persistence over a location. Low-Earth orbiting satellites come and go in a swift pass overhead, and the bigger drones now operated by the military still need to return to base at regular intervals for refuelling.

"Qinetiq is now looking to the Ministry of Defence and the DoD (US Department of Defense) to put a system into service," said Mr Saltmarsh.

"We have proved the concept; we have proved we can provide persistence; we have proved we can put useful payloads on to it that will actually do things the MoD has a requirement to do."

The Zephyr flight is the second event of note this year in solar-powered aviation. Earlier this month, Andre Borschberg became the first person to pilot a manned solar plane through the night.

Testing the Volt's braking system at the Milford Proving Grounds (w/Video)

Valerie Boatman, a Performance Integration Engineer for GM has been putting the Volt's braking system through it's paces at the test at the Milford Proving Grounds. The Volt uses an electrohydraulic brake system developed by TRW that is based on the same technology used for the two-mode hybrid trucks. The system uses a high-pressure hydraulic accumulator to provide brake boost because vacuum is not available when the range extender is not running.

The engineers spend 8 - 10 hour days on end at facilities like the Milford proving ground, as well at hot and cold weather facilities, evaluating the performance on all kinds of different surfaces and during various dynamic maneuvers.

Patron on pole for ALMS Lime Rock

Patrón Highcroft Racing’s David Brabham won a stunning wet qualifying session Friday at Lime Rock Park for his second overall pole position in the American Le Mans Northeast Grand Prix. Brabham turned in a best lap of 58.106 in the HPD ARX-01c that he will drive with Simon Pagenaud.

Brabham and Patrón Highcroft scored their first overall victory in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón two years ago at Lime Rock. He and Pagenaud currently are on a three-race win streak.

News used with permission from American LeMans Series. Photos copyright 2010 Dave Kennedy/Slot Car News

Lizards on the Pole for Northeast Grand Prix!

For the first time since the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR teams put their cars on the GT class front row for tomorrow New England Grand Prix, round five of the 2010 American Le Mans Series at Lime Rock Park in northwest Connecticut.

Patrick Long (USA) captured the GT pole with the #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR in the car he shares with Joerg Bergmeister (Germany), while Wolf Henzler (Germany) put the Team Falken Tire Porsche in the second position, ahead of the factory Ferraris, BMWs and Corvettes. Henzler will share the Falken Porsche with Bryan Sellers (USA).

The two-hour, 45-minute New England Grand Prix field will get the green flag Saturday, July 24, at 2:00 PM Eastern Daylight time, and will be telecast live in its entirety on SPEED TV. The live radio broadcast will be on Sirius Radio Channel #127 and XM Radio Channel #242, as well as on www.americanlemans.com, which also provides live timing and scoring.

“"At Lime Rock, there is a fine line between being a hero and going into the guardrail, but the Flying Lizard crew and Michelin put us in position to turn a good lap in the steady rain,"” said Long, "who had the pole here in both 2006 and 2009.

“"With our engine over the rear axle, the Porsche has an advantage in the rain over our competitors, and then our crew really nailed the setup, so it gave me all the right tools to go fast. With the competition in our class, you can turn a good lap and still end up seventh on the grid, so this is a great result for us.” Henzler, whose Team Falken Tire Porsche was completely rebuilt after a fuel fire at Salt Lake City two weeks ago, was pleased with the car’s front row position on the grid."

“"When the conditions are this wet, there is always the potential to lock up the wheels under braking, so the difference for us was the performance of our Falken rain tires. Even though we were pleased with our time, we felt we could have gone even faster – maybe not fast enough for the pole, but faster – if the traffic was better. Of course, the weight in the back of the Porsche helped us as well,"” said Henzler.

Bergmeister (left)/Long trail Ferrari drivers Melo/Bruni by two points in the drivers points chase, while Porsche is a single point behind BMW in the manufacturers championship going into tomorrow’s event.

In the overall LMP qualifying, Klaus Graf (Germany), in the Muscle Milk Porsche RS Spyder which he shares with team owner Greg Pickett (USA), qualified a close second to pole-sitter David Brabham (England). Graf was fastest in both practice sessions earlier in the day, and showed the field that he will be a factor in tomorrow’s event.

In the GTC class for matched Porsche 911 GT3 Cup racers, Jeroen Bleekemolen (Netherlands) scored his third straight pole in a row as he put the Black Swan Racing Porsche on the pole for him and car owner Tim Pappas (USA). Bleekemolen and Pappas are back in the championship hunt in the class after leaders Gonzales and Leitzinger withdrew their entry.

News used with permission from American LeMans Series. Photos Copyright 2010 Dave Kennedy/Slot Car News

Ford’s new Focus RS could be hybrid powered

The RS version of Ford’s new-generation Focus could be powered by both a turbocharged petrol engine and a torquey electric motor mounted on the rear axle, according to senior company sources.

The Focus RS will use ford’s 2.0-liter Ecoboost petrol engine that produces 250hp of power to drive the front set of wheels. The engine will be coupled with an electric motor setup mounted on the rear axle.

The advantages of the layout for a high-performance car are that it enables the use of a relatively small-capacity engine, but the strong torque from an electric motor gives the car a considerable performance boost.

It also makes it all-wheel drive without the complexity of a conventional set-up using a power take-off and propshaft. A hybrid Focus RS would most likely be able to match the performance of today’s RS500, but with much-improved economy and lower CO2 emissions.


Autocar

Couple charged with GM hybrid tech theft

Federal authorities in Detroit charged a Michigan couple Thursday with stealing information about hybrid vehicle technology from General Motors and attempting to put it to use for a Chinese car company.

Yu Chin and his wife Sanshan Du of Troy, Mich., have been charged with, among other things, unauthorized possession of trade secrets and wire fraud.

According to the charges, from December 2003 to May 2006 Du conspired to obtain trade secrets about the automaker's hybrid vehicle technologies and passed that information to her husband who used it for the couple's own company, Millennium Technology International (MTI).

In January, 2005 GM offered Du, then a GM employee, a severance package. About five days later, she copied thousands of GM documents to a computer hard drive used for MTI business, authorities allege.

MTI later entered into a business venture to provide hybrid technology to the Chinese automaker Chery Automobile, a company that is a competitor of GM's in China.

In May 2006, the couple drove to a dumpster behind a grocery store where they discarded bags of shredded documents related to the case, authorities charge.

GM estimates the stolen information to be worth about $40 million, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.

"We cooperated with the U.S. attorney's office in developing the case and will continue to cooperate with them as appropriate," GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson said.

A Chery Automobile spokesperson was not immediately available for comment

Ford will offer hybrid at same price as gas model

For the first time, an American automaker plans to sell a hybrid car for the same, lower price as its gas-powered counterpart, removing at least one obstacle for drivers who want a greener ride.

At a little more than $35,000, the 2011 Lincoln MKZ sedan won't be cheap, but the decision by Ford to match the prices of the two styles could lead competitors to follow suit with future models.

The hybrid MKZ, debuting this fall and running on both gas and electric power, will be a bargain after factoring in savings at the pump. It gets more than double the mileage of the traditional version in city driving.
While automakers won't reveal what they spend to install a hybrid system in a car, the final product usually costs several thousand dollars more than a gas-powered version of the same car.

The Lexus HS 250h, the MKZ's closest competitor, costs about $2,500 more than the Lexus IS, a similar, small, gas-powered sedan. Ford charges $8,840 more for the hybrid version of its Ford Escape SUV.

The MKZ can still make money even if Lincoln doesn't charge more for the hybrid, said Erich Merkle, president of the consulting company Autoconomy.com. Luxury cars are sold at a significant premium, he said, ensuring a profit for Ford.
Lincoln can also borrow the hybrid system from the Ford Fusion, its corporate twin, and save on development costs.

"Conventional wisdom is that the hybrid should be priced higher, but there's not really anything to say that a hybrid has to command a higher price," Merkle said.
Besides, Ford had to keep the price down, said Jessica Caldwell, an analyst for Edmunds.com. If it had sold for more than $40,000, it would have faced tougher competition from luxury cars like the Mercedes E-Class or the Audi A6, she said.

"It's going to take moves like this one to break into the luxury market," she said.
Other automakers may not try to match Lincoln's move if it is limited to the MKZ, but they will have to take notice if Lincoln uses the same strategy with future hybrid models, said Aaron Bragman, an analyst with IHS Automotive.

John Felice, Lincoln's marketing manager, said pricing strategy is an opportunity to get buyers interested in the Lincoln brand. Even after a complete revamp of its cars in the past few years, Lincoln still lags behind other luxury brands. Lincoln sales were up 7.5 percent in the first six months of this year, compared with 17 percent industrywide.

Lincoln is also trying to make up for the sales it is losing by phasing out its Mercury brand, which includes two hybrids.

The MKZ is one of most popular Lincoln models, but its sales have fallen 5 percent so far this year.

The MKZ will get 41 mpg in the city and 36 on the highway. That beats the Lexus HS 250h, which gets 35 mpg in the city and 34 on the highway. The gasoline version of the Lincoln MKZ gets 18 mpg in the city and 27 on the highway.

The new hybrid system isn't the Lincoln MKZ's only nod to the environment. Its wood trim comes from well-managed forests, while the leather seats use a chromium-free tanning process that makes them easier to recycle, Ford said.

Lincoln MKZ buyers are not eligible for federal tax credits for alternative-fuel vehicles. Federal law limits the credits to the first 60,000 buyers of a company's hybrids, and Ford hit that number on March 31.

Ford is the first U.S. automaker to offer a hybrid and conventional version of a car at the same price. Industry analysts say they are unaware of a foreign automaker doing it, either.

Even if Ford were to lose money on the MKZ hybrid, it would probably be willing to make the trade in exchange for marketing value for the Lincoln brand, said Bruze Belzowski, assistant research scientist at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute.

"Lincoln might say, 'We're going to take a hit on this,'" Belzowski said. "They may say something like 'We're willing to take a hit on this because the marketing value is going to outweigh the cost.'"

Mercedes-Benz to offer 2 hybrids in 2011

Mercedes-Benz has showcased two new hybrid vehicles for the year 2011, which includes the S400 Hybrid premium luxury sedan and the ML450 Hybrid SUV. The S400 includes a 20hp electric motor working in tandem with a 275hp V6 gasoline engine. The electric motor is fueled by the world’s first lithium-ion battery designed especially for automotive use.

The ML450 Hybrid SUV comes with two electric motors that are coupled with 275hp V6 gasoline engine. The integration of electric motors in both the hybrids provides impressive power and fuel economy that is estimated to be about 21mpg around town and 24mpg on the highway for the ML450 SUV.

The 3.5-liter V6 engine included in both the vehicles takes advantage of the Atkinson principle – compromising torque for fuel efficiency and emission reduction. The decrease in torque is corrected by the electric motors that generate up to 118lb-ft of torque. A powerful computer, capable of 50 million calculations per second, calculates the best operating mode 160 times a second to maintain an ideal balance between fuel economy and performance.

The hybrid system further includes a fuel-saving start-stop feature that turns off the gasoline engine at low speeds when braking to stop. Moreover, during braking, the electric motors also act as a generator recovering kinetic energy and storing in the lithium-ion battery on board.

LA to get four wind farms that generate 3 GW of electricity

It seems that the clean energy wave is sweeping across the US like never before. In a step that promises to give a huge boost to the renewable energy sector on the American West coast, Terra-Gen Power LLC has arranged finances worth $1.2 billion to establish four wind farms northwest of Los Angeles. The turbines for the project will be made by a Danish company in Colorado.

The entire project guarantees energy generation of as much as 3,000 megawatts of electricity apart from creating 5,000 new jobs in a country which only yesterday announced the extension of unemployment insurance benefits. The turbines will be made by a Danish company but built in Colorado.

Half of U.S. vehicles would be electrified by 2030 under proposed House bill

Millions of electric-powered vehicles that would slash America's dependence on foreign oil and cut carbon emissions would be put on the road under legislation approved by a Senate committee on Wednesday.

The legislation, passed 19-4 in favor, was one of several bills cleared by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that might be folded into a broader energy and climate bill Democrats are struggling to bring to the Senate floor.

The bill approved by the committee would pour nearly $3.9 billion over 10 years into selected communities to build infrastructure to charge electric cars, conduct research and provide incentives for consumers to buy plug-in vehicles.

The goal is to put the United States on a path to electrify half the country's cars and trucks by 2030, which would cut U.S. demand for oil by about one-third.

"Passing this legislation will strengthen our national security and improve the air we breathe, while relying on our abundant and diverse electricity supply to fuel our cars," said Senator Byron Dorgan, the bill's chief sponsor.

A new bill that addresses climate change and renewable energy is a key priority for the Obama administration but time is running short on the congressional calendar with a scheduled August recess and congressional elections looming in November.

Senator Jeff Bingaman, who chairs the energy panel, said he was not sure if Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid would unveil his encompassing energy and climate legislation next week. The bill would be in trouble if the Senate does not pass it before the August break, according to Bingaman.

"It will be difficult to get a final bill to the president for signature," Bingaman told reporters. "The earlier that the full Senate would act the better position we'll be to actually get a bill to the president."

Congress is scheduled to work through the first or second of week of August, and then recess until after Labor Day in early September.

Reid said on Tuesday he was still grappling for consensus among Democrats to forge a new climate and energy bill.