Lotus Supercharges The EV Range Extender: 2011 Geneva Motor Show
If you're familiar with the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, you probably know that it carries an onboard 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that acts as a generator, powering the electric motors that drive the wheels (under most circumstances, anyway). Today at the Geneva Motor Show, Lotus unveiled a new take on the range extender engine, adding supercharging to improve efficiency.
The new Lotus Range Extender is a production unit for use in real cars. It uses a 1.3-liter three-cylinder engine with the added power of a supercharger to create 50 kilowatts of peak electrical power (67 horsepower) at just 3,500 rpm. The combination of small displacement plus the supercharger means it's more fuel efficient than most standard engines.
A naturally-aspirated (non-supercharged) version of the Range Extender was also unveiled, capable of producing 47 horsepower from 1,500 rpm to 3,500 rpm. The engines weigh just 112 pounds without the supercharger or 128 pounds with it.
Though the new Range Extender engine hasn't yet been placed in any production cars, it is on display in Geneva in Lotus' own Evora 414Evolution. Lotus hopes to contract the sale of the engine out to other carmakers for use in series-hybrid designs similar to those found in the Chevy Volt and Fisker Karma.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Most Popular Nav Destinations: McDonald’s, Walmart, Home Depot
When Americans turn to navigation devices to search for services when on the road, they tend toward what's familiar: McDonalds when getting a fast-food bite; Holiday Inn when looking for a room; and Walmart when needing other items.
That's one of the possible points to take home from TeleNav's latest roundup of search data. The company is one of the world's largest wireless location-based service providers, with over 17 million subscribers, and collected the latest results anonymously from users in September 2010.
Among chains, McDonald's trumps Subway, Taco Bell, KFC, or Burger King by a long shot among those searching for fast food. Holiday Inn was also by a wide margin the most-searched among hotel chains, followed by Marriott, Hampton, Motel 6, and Hilton. Among big-box stores, Walmart easily takes the cake, and when nav users were looking for a coffee Starbucks easily beat Dunkin' Donuts. Among do-it-yourselfers, Home Depot is by far the most popular search.
The data pertains mainly to smartphone-based nav systems, but TeleNav says that 84 percent of its nav searches are made while in the car.
The company--already used in Ford products with SYNC--is setting up a location-relevant 'mobile ad platform' that could bring on-the-spot discounts to those who search and then decide to drive to a sponsored restaurant, store, or point of interest.
[TeleNav]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Mercedes To Make Its Xenon Headlights Even Brighter
Xenon headlights are the brightest thing on the road at night, and Mercedes-Benz is making them even brighter.
Starting in December 2010, production of E-Class and S-Class models will use of new, higher intensity xenon burners from Osram, the company that used to be called Sylvania. Mercedes says the new xenon headlights are 20% brighter and closer to daylight, with a technical rating of 5000 Kelvin.
According to Mercedes, the brighter lights will reduce eye strain on the driver and improve safety. This is a good thing, since 20 percent of car travel is at night, yet night is when 40 percent of fatal accidents occur. But, it's also a bad thing -- unless your car is equipped with autmatically dimming rearview and sideview mirrors, these new super-bright xenon headlights can be a dangerous distraction. I have driven more than once in a vehicle without that self-dimming feature holding one hand to block an annoying headlight flaring in my view.
After the E-Class and the S-Class, Mercedes-Benz will introduce the brighter headlights to other models, and older cars can be retrofitted with the new, higher intensity lights.model series will be gradually fitted with the new xenon burners in 2011. All previous Mercedes-Benz vehicles equipped with xenon headlamps can also be fitted with this additional safety feature, as the new xenon burners will be available from branches and dealers as Mercedes-Benz original parts.
Hopefully, more manufacturers will be adding self-dimming rearview and sideview mirrors as Mercedes and other manufacturers switch to these super-bright headlights.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
2011 Kia Sportage: An IIHS Top Safety Pick
The 2011 Kia Sportage has been recognized as one of the safest new vehicles on the market; it's earned Top Safety Pick status from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
In order to be named a Top Safety Pick, a model must earn top 'good' ratings in frontal, side, and rear crash tests, as well as the agency's new rollover (roof crush) test—and have electronic stability control.
While the Sportage wasn't actually tested, the IIHS applied results from the 2010 and 2011 Hyundai Tucson, which is nearly identical structurally. And as interior trim and door pieces can often make the difference between a 'good' and 'acceptable' score, there's apparently more in common between these two vehicles than Kia or Hyundai would like us to believe. Though Kia and Hyundai are run as separate companies in the U.S., and their respective models are typically built at separate plants, the two brands come from the same South Korean automaker.
The Sportage (and Tucson) can take 4.43 times its body weight in a designated area of the roof before it deforms a specified amount. That easily surpasses ratio of four the IIHS requires to earn a 'good' rating, and is much better than the federal government's current requirement of just 1.5 (a requirement of about three times body weight will be phased in).
The new 2011 Sportage is hardly Kia's only safety bright spot. The model joins the 2010 Forte sedan, 2010 Soul hatchback, and 2011 Sorento crossover in earning that top recognition from the Institute.
In the same Small SUV category, the 2010 Honda Element, Jeep Patriot, Subaru Forester, and Volkswagen Tiguan also carry the Top Safety Pick designation.
[IIHS, via Kicking Tires]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Ford Boasts Improved Resale Value For 2010 Ford Taurus
After a year on the market, Ford notes that its redesigned 2010 Ford Taurus is getting far more money at auction—a full 39 percent more—compared to the 2009 model of the same age.
According to Ford, the 2009 Ford Taurus was selling at a discount compared to the 2009 Toyota Avalon, but now they've switched, with the 2010 Ford Taurus, comparably equipped, selling at about $2,500 more than the 2010 Avalon.
Of course, in all fairness, Ford neglects to say that Toyota redesigned the Avalon for 2011, and Ford had redesigned the Taurus for 2010, so Ford is at a bit of a natural advantages comparing apples to oranges.
The 2010 Ford Taurus redesign is undeniably better-looking, but it hasn't been received well on all counts. The model ends up sacrificing rear-seat headroom for its stylish new lower roofline, and it isn't as roomy overall as the model it replaces—although The Car Connection, in addition to the look, appreciates the higher-quality feel of the interior, advanced tech features such as Sync, and available all-wheel drive and high-performance Taurus SHO model.
Ford's observation might ring true for a vehicle that still looks very new, but the real test will come after the vehicles are two to three years old or more. Residual value experts ALG still rate the 2010 Ford Taurus at just two stars out of five, indicating that they predict it will depreciate at a higher than average rate.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Suzuki Dealership Network Shrinks, As Cars Become More Appealing
If you're shopping for a sporty, economical compact sedan, we'd recommend that you put the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi on your shopping list. But there's a potential snag: With Suzuki cutting its dealership base, you might find that you no longer have an outlet nearby.
Despite strong, almost unanimously positive reviews of the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi sedan—we call it "sophisticated, well designed, and a lot more fun to drive than most other four-cylinder mid-size sedans"—and some very noteworthy value claims, like the lowest-priced vehicle with all-wheel drive and a nav system (the 2010 Suzuki SX4), the brand hasn't found shoppers rushing into their local Suzuki dealership. Suzuki sales are down so far this year versus 2009.
Some of Suzuki's dealerships have in fact been selling just a few of the brand's vehicles per year.
Although most improved in this year's APEAL study from J.D. Power and Associates—indicating that its products, like the new 2010 Suzuki Kizashi, are appealing to shoppers—the brand ranked a distant last place in this year's Customer Service Index (CSI) study.
According to Automotive News, Suzuki offered buyout offers to 150 of its dealerships, through a program that ended in July, and about 50 accepted the offer, leaving the brand with about 300 stores remaining across the nation.
Suzuki is hoping that, by weeding out the poor-performers, the rest of the dealerships will have more of a chance of being more profitable, as the brand repositions its marketing for the U.S. and aims for a more upscale customer.
[Automotive News]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Fiat Dealer Network Starting To Take Form
You might have heard that Chrysler plans to soon sell the stylish, city-savvy Fiat 500 minicar in the U.S., but beyond that intent plans have been sketchy at best as to where exactly you'll go for your test drive.
Full "Fiat Experience" market plans are going to be presented later in the month at a meeting, to about 600 Chrysler dealers who are in any of the 119 cities that Fiat will be initially targeting.
Simply put, reports the Detroit News, citing Chrysler VP of network development and fleet Peter Grady, the automaker will require a separate sales and display area for Fiat from the beginning, with an agreement to transition to a full Fiat dealership facility as the brand grows. That sounds a lot like the strategy that BMW successfully used some years ago for its MINI brand.
Dealers will have until September 22 to decide, which might not leave a lot of time to have Fiat showrooms set up by the time the cars begin arriving.
Later this year, the Toluca, Mexico, factory that has long built the Chrysler PT Cruiser will instead start producing the little Fiat 500.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
TomTom Has Been Watching You Speed, And Now It’s Telling All
You already know that many drivers use GPS devices, and that many of those devices are made by TomTom. What you may not have known is the degree to which TomTom has been tracking and recording data about your traveling habits -- specifically, the time it takes you to get from Point A to Point B. Using a bit of software known as IQ Routes, TomTom devices have quietly been uploading driving data to a national speed database, in an effort to help fleet drivers motor across the country quickly and efficiently. While that sounds a shade Big Brotherly, there are a couple of upsides: for one, the data sources remain anonymous. Even better, the data shows that most of you drive the speed limit. Let's keep it that way. [TopSpeed]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Hyundai Enters The Superbowl Fray With Six Ads
Yesterday we mentioned that Kia was making its first-ever foray into Superbowl advertising with a spot for the 2011 Kia Sorento. Now we've learned that Kia's big sister, Hyundai, will also be capitalizing on its 2009 success with some game day ads of its own -- six, in fact.
Of that total, two will play during the game itself, and four will run during the pre-game ramp-up. The 2011 Hyundai Sonata (at left) gets prime positioning in two of these spots -- one of which will run during gameplay, and the other of which will be the sole spot between the national anthem and kickoff. To hear the company's VP of marketing tell it, the ads won't be especially edgy or raunchy (sad face), but the idea of poking fun at Brett Favre for his reluctance to tout Hyundai durability sounds well worth watching. [MediaPost]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
Angry? Chrysler Launches Hotlines To Handle Customer Complaints
Say what you will about Chrysler: the company knows that it has an image problem. The man behind Chrysler's marketing, Olivier Francois, has begun the rebranding process with some fairly controversial ads, but now the company's customer care executive, Pietro Gorlier, is taking things one step further by launching customer hotlines.
As of next Monday, January 18, Chrysler customers will be able to call one of four toll-free numbers -- one for Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram -- to speak to a representative about their vehicle. Of course, Chrysler would love to see folks use those numbers to book test drives or to ask about warranties or to shower the company with high praise, but we're guessing that most people will be calling for...different reasons.
In a this long-tail era, when companies of all sorts are expected to offer the widest possible array of products and to remain in constant communication with customers via phone, email, and Facebook, the addition of hotlines is a great move on Chrysler's part. No, it's not what anyone would call groundbreaking, and frankly, we'd love to see something a bit edgier from the pentastar gang -- assistance by SMS? direct messaging on Twitter? -- but this is a great start.
[AutoNews]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
