Adrienne Roberts and Mike Colias write in the Wall Street Journal that automakers are hoping a surge of summer buying will save their bottom lines from what appears to be a rapidly cooling market for automobiles. They write: Overall, auto makers sold 1.43 million vehicles in the U.S. in April, down 4.7% from a year earlier, according to Autodata Corp. Detroit is hoping its traditionally strong summer sales season will get it out of the rut. Car makers plan to offer plenty of discounts, and rely on low gasoline prices and broad economic strength. The U.S. auto industry has been on a … [Read more...]
Never Run Out of Gas Again with a Connected Car
ExxonMobil is teaming up with Ford to add ExxonMobil's Speedpass+ app to Ford's SYNC3 Connectivity System. The connected systems will tell users before they even get into their vehicles if they're running low on gasoline. It will also pay for their gasoline automatically at Exxon and Mobil stations. Drivers will find the stations with GPS connected to the app that will show them the fastest route to the nearest station. The system will also help protect customers from credit card skimmers attached to gas pumps. ExxonMobil's Energy Factor explains the sytem: “What we heard from consumers is … [Read more...]
This is the Future of Elon Musk
I know and speak with a handful of Tesla car owners. They love them. Their enthusiasm is more powerful than an army of car salesmen. That’s not easy to do. It’s a good idea to listen to what Elon Musk is thinking. … [Read more...]
Can Honda Finally Make Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cars Work?
Since 2002 Honda has been trying to obtain lift-off for its FCX fuel cell driven line of vehicles. Now Honda has developed the Clarity Fuel Cell that is the company's latest attempt at making the power train work. The Clarity's range is longer, it has fewer fuel cells, has room for five, and generated 170 horse power. It's a major improvement in fuel cell performance for Honda, but is it enough to gain popular uptake of the niche vehicles? At WIRED, Eric Adams says Honda is suffering from a classic chicken/egg problem that fuel cell vehicles run into at every attempt to popularize them. … [Read more...]
After Trump Rebuke, Toyota Plans $1.3 Billion Plant in Kentucky
Toyota is making a big deal out of its planned $1.3 billion Kentucky plant. The plant will produce Camry sedans and, it is hoped by Toyota, cool down the anti-import rhetoric coming from the Trump administration. Adrienne Roberts reports in The Wall Street Journal: The investment plan is long in the making, coinciding with the introduction of revamped products in the U.S. The announcement comes, however, on the heels of Toyota facing high-profile criticism from President Donald Trump earlier this year for plans to build a $1 billion plant in Guanajuato, Mexico. Toyota’s first rebuke from … [Read more...]
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