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Volvo crashes C30 EV so you don't have to, doesn't spill a drop of battery juice (video)
Try as it might to act hip and young, Volvo is still a company that's associated with the name "safety," and that's really not a bad thing. Demonstrations like this help to reinforce that, with the company taking great pride in its C30 EV holding up as well as it did in a crash. It was subjected to a 40mph offset and, while it's looking mighty deranged, no portions of the electric drivetrain were compromised. In other words: no battery goo leaked and no first responders would have been zapped. If that's all a little too ghastly for you, fear not: there are plenty of pictures of a beautiful E30 with nary a body panel askew, including a peek into its trunk, which doesn't appear to have been nearly as negatively affected as the poor Focus Electric. Update: Video after the break! %Gallery-113973%
VW Golf Blue-e-motion and Hybrid Touareg strike a pose in Detroit
Alternative means of propulsion are the norm at the North American International Auto Show this year in Detroit, and VW had a few options on display. First up is the Touareg Hybrid, the company's first, with a 3.0 liter supercharged V6 paired to an electric motor, offering a combined 380hp, 0 - 60 times of 6.2 seconds (not bad for a 5,000lb SUV), and up to 27mpg -- if you don't dip too deep in the throttle. Keep things light, and under 30mph, and you can drive it as a purely EV car so long as there's charge. It's available now. Also on display is the Golf Blue-e-motion that our friends at Autoblog previously got to spend a little time with in Germany. This is currently built on the Golf Mk VI platform but, by the time it is released in 2013, will be applied to the upcoming Mk VII platform. It's said to offer a realistic 80 miles of range and, unlike the Focus Electric, hasn't made too many sacrifices in the cargo compartment. %Gallery-113994% %Gallery-113995%
Li-Ion Motors Inizio electric supercar stops by Detroit
We already showed you a quick tour of two of the three Automotive X-Prize winners. Wondering where the third was? Hanging out in the booth of its creator, Li-Ion motors, looking green and decidedly outclassed by the second car that company is showing off. It's the Inizio, a proper supercar of the electric variety, the base model hitting 60 from a standstill in four seconds and topping out at 130 -- perhaps not Ferrari-busting but surely more than enough to get your license taken away. If that's not enough there will be multiple models with different power levels and carbon fiber construction, with the higher-end dropping that 0 - 60 time to 3.4 seconds and boosting the top speed to 200. We spent some time chatting with Li-Ion Motors Project Manager Paul Daigrepont about the design of the car, most interesting being the transmission. It's a custom-made four-speed unit that, interestingly, has no clutch. It's directly driven by the motor, shifting via paddles with the ECU dropping the torque on the motor momentarily to unload the gears, allowing an upshift to happen. At a stop the motor simply stops spinning and, if you want reverse, the car engages first gear and runs backwards! The company is accepting orders, starting at $139,000, a price that makes the Leaf feel like even more of a bargain. %Gallery-113979%
Harman Experimental HMI with netbook internals, augmented reality aspirations hands-on (video)
Yes, folks, more fun infotainment systems to hope that your manufacturer of choice picks up before your 'Ol Bessie gives up the ghost and has to be put out to pasture. Regardless of which logo you prefer on your grille there's a good chance that Harman works with them, and so maybe they'll pick up this. It's called the Experimental HMI and it's basically a netbook for your dash -- minus the keyboard and junk. It's running an Atom processor and has a Flash-based interface, making it easy to develop for. The killer app at this point is an augmented reality navigation system you can see demoed in the video below, but it'll ultimately be up to the manufacturers to do what they will with it.
Tesla Chief Engineer Peter Rawlinson geeks out with us about Model S design
Did you sit through all three of the lengthy, expository videos that lovingly and exhaustively detailed every aspect of the Model S's design and engineering? If so, you'll be familiar with Peter Rawlinson, Tesla Chief Engineer and genuine car nut who, in previous lives, held the titles of Chief Engineer of Advanced Engineering at Lotus and Principal Engineer at Jaguar. His latest creation, the Model S, shares some frame concepts the products of one of those companies and some styling cues from another, but it's safe to say this is an all new car that has been obsessively designed starting with a "blank computer screen" as he puts it. He was kind enough to spend some time talking tech with us, and you can read the highlights below. %Gallery-113678%
Johnson Controls Connected Center Stack plays nice with a quartet of smartphones, we go hands-on
Smartphone integration in your car's head unit isn't of all that much use if it's only going to play nice with one brand or another (we're looking at you, Mini Connected). Johnson Controls is being rather more open with what it's calling the Connected Center Stack, basically a framework that OEMs and aftermarket radio makers can build upon to create their ultimate infotainment system. It quite naturally connected and played audio over USB or Bluetooth, augmenting that with support for Pandora and even Terminal Mode, as implemented on a Nokia N97, replicating the phone's UI exactly. There are both touchscreen and jog dial controls, and the unit can get data either directly from a smartphone or through a USB connected 3G modem. Or that's the theory, at least. The unit on display was a little buggy and not reliable enough for us to get a video of it in action, but with any luck it'll be cleaned up and hitting production center stacks... eventually. %Gallery-113993%
A tour around the X-Prize winning Edison2 Very Light Car (video)
A few months ago, three teams split $10 million in prizes, finally claiming the Progressive Insurance Automotive X prize. They're all at CES, and we got a chance to speak in detail with one of the men behind one of them, Edison2's Oliver Kutter, about the design of the car and, ultimately, what's going to come next thanks to that $5 million in cash the company walked away with. Read on for the details from that conversation, including why this tiny thing could actually be safer than a traditional car, as well as a video walkthrough, and pictures of the winner of the two-wheeled X-Tracer too. %Gallery-113929%
Ford takes us on the world's shortest test drive in the Focus Electric (video)
When offered a chance to take a Ford Focus Electric for a spin we jumped at it, though were admittedly a bit perplexed when told it would be on the show floor. As it turns out the company set up a loop upon which a Transit Van and Focus Electric were driving, one after the next, up a steep incline and over the heads of fellow journalists, stopping at a little dyno to see just what this thing was putting down, and then back around to where it all started. No shocking information was gleaned, and we still can't get anyone to confirm or deny the ability for a 480v quick-charge, but it sure beat walking.
Toyota puts Prius C on a pedestal, we go back for more
Sorry, we can't help ourselves. You see, we like the Prius. A lot. But it's just so... well... boring. Not the Prius C. It's just a Concept, but it's a Curvy one, a Cute one, and a downright Catch. Call us anytime. Toyota. You have our number. %Gallery-113924%
Denso dash with iPhone steering wheel knows when you are sleeping, knows when you're awake (video)
Smartphone integration is the next big thing that's happening right now, but it isn't quite happening the way Denso is doing it. This is the company's dashboard of a future, with its most predominant feature being an iPhone embedded right in the steering wheel. That drives an infotainment system and a small, circular LCD above with a bunch of widgets you can bounce with a touch from the phone to the display. Most interesting is one that communicates with traffic lights to let you know how fast to go if you want to miss 'em all. The idea is to save fuel by not stopping and starting, but we're thinking this could also do a lot to ease hypertension rates nationwide. Another thing the dash can do is tell when you're about to drowse off. One of those widgets is a cup of coffee that empties as you're getting sleepy. An all-seeing webcam perched atop the dash tracks your face and eyes to know just how alert you are. Drop below a threshold and the dash starts blinking red. It's time for a nap -- or maybe more coffee, for goodness' sake. %Gallery-113861%
Ford Focus Electric motor extracted, split asunder, coppery guts exposed
Yesterday we saw the junk in the trunk, now here's what's powering it. It's the motor that makes the Ford Focus Electric go, and while we still don't know many details (we couldn't get anyone to quote us a weight) it is a reasonably compact little thing. We did, however, get confirmation that it will not be run through either a standard transmission, like the dry-clutch automatic that the regular Focus comes with, nor something like the two-speed transmission that Tesla uses in its Roadster. It'll be "like a CVT" we're told, keeping the motor at its most efficient RPM, and while we're not sure what that looks like on the inside we're sure that there'll be no shifting involved, neither manual nor automatic. %Gallery-113850%
Mercedes kicks off F-Cell World Drive, circumnavigating the globe on hydrogen
Fuel cell-powered cars provide the efficiency and driveability of an electric vehicle while also offering the unlimited range of a traditional gasoline powered car -- assuming you can find a place to top off those hydrogen tanks. Right now that's a bit of a problem, but Mercedes Benz is out to show that it's not nearly as big of a hindrance as everyone makes it out to be. It'll be driving the B-Class F-Cell model around the world, starting in Stuttgart and motoring down to Lisbon, flying over to the US and driving across that, then across Australia before hopping a boat to Shanghai and driving all the way across Asia, ultimately arriving back to Stuttgart facing in the same direction they left. The B-Class F-Cell can cover 400km on a tank and can be refilled in about three minutes. At this point we have no reason to believe that either Ewan McGregor nor Charlie Boorman will be along for the ride, but given how well things went in Log Way Round perhaps that's for the best.
Ford Focus Electric pops a hatch and shows all that battery junk in its trunk
The five-door Ford Focus is an eminently practical vehicle, and the Electric version will be as well. However, we're now learning that it won't be quite as practical as we'd hoped. We didn't get the chance to pop the rear hatch on the thing when we were exploring it at CES. Here in Detroit we did and you can see what we found above. That's definitely a big 'ol box, putting a hurting on cargo space, but ultimately a small price to pay for rolling totally fuel- and emissions-free. %Gallery-113708%
Mercedes SLS AMG E-Cell hitting dealerships in 2013
You may disagree with the car's color and its powertrain choice, but you can't argue with 528 horsepower, 649lb/ft of torque, and AWD acceleration so good it should come with a neck brace. It's a legitimately hot car, and it's legitimately coming to dealerships. Mercedes today confirmed that the SLS AMG E-Cell will be available for order at dealerships in 2013, and while no price was given, expect it to be a lot. The gasoline-powered model cost around $200,000, after all. Oh, and that citrus color? It's pretty stunning in the flesh, a matte hue that makes you go "Mmm." %Gallery-113701%
Toyota debuts new Prius models, family-friendlier Prius V and funkier Prius C
Toyota made no bones about the fact that more Prius models were to be unveiled in Detroit for the North American International Auto Show, even throwing advertisements up around town asking whether it's supposed to be Priuses or Priii. (We, as you can see, chose to side-step the debate.) Now we know what's coming, first being the Prius V. It's the MPV the company has been teasing, basically just a taller version of the four-door sedan with a hatchback and a whopping 60 percent more cargo space -- 32 cubic feet, which is more than most compact SUVs. It's to be rated 42mpg city, 38 highway, and 40 combined, which is a surprising 10mpg lower than the sedan model. That's perhaps a bit disappointing, but availability this summer is a pleasant surprise. Next is the Prius C, naturally for "concept," which is aimed at "young singles and couples." It's definitely funkier and way cooler than the current model, looking to have a nose very similar to the car's FT-86 concept. We hope the production model looks quite close to this, and while that's always a doubtful proposition we won't have all that long to wait, with it hitting dealerships in the first half of 2012. Toyota also showed off the Prius Plug-In, the very same one we test drove last year, said to be coming first to the western and eastern coasts of the US first, and re-affirmed the "patriarch" status of the current-generation Prius sedan, having sold 230,000 cars since 2009. It's good to be the king. %Gallery-113692%
Tesla Model S takes off its clothes, shows us its motor
Oh, wow. Are you sure we're ready for this, Tesla? I mean, just last week you wouldn't even let us sit inside your Model S prototype and now... this. You sure we're not moving too fast? A fully naked Model S is on display at the company's booth, bare frame and bare aluminum separated by a Lucite riser, giving us a glimpse at the car's motor nestled between the rear wheels. Take a look at it, barely bigger than the exhaust of a modern musclecar yet powering this thing to 60mph in 5.7 seconds and up to an anticipated maximum 300 mile range. Unfortunately the tangle of wires and other components that'll actually make this thing go are missing, and the paint, but it's still a great view at the simple, obviously Elise-inspired frame that holds it all together. %Gallery-113678%
Ford's Vertrek concept gives us an idea of what the company's future dashboard might look like
Sure, we're fresh from sampling Ford's next evolutions of MyFord, the Mobile and AppLink systems, but those are due to start hitting cars in the next months and years. Sometimes it's fun to look a little further down the road, and that's what the company's Vertrek concept is doing, giving us a taste of exterior styling to come in the company's C-segment cars (like the C-MAX), plus a taste of some future innovations in the drivetrain department, most notable being an alternator that boosts its output under braking to provide a regenerative-like effect despite this not being a hybrid. While the exterior is quite striking -- showing clean, sharp, dynamic lines and the impossibly small mirrors of a concept -- it's the interior that caught our eye. Yes, futuristic interiors like these rarely look little like their subsequent production successors, but we can get some ideas of what Ford is looking at going forward, starting with what looks like an LCD (or possibly OLED) gauge cluster, something that's increasingly common now. The concept still has MyFord five-way controllers on the steering wheel stalks, but nestled down between the seats and duplicated on the dash is an Audi MMI or iDrive-like jog wheel. Interestingly there's the silhouette of what can only be an iPhone displayed on the center, perhaps giving an indicator of where the current media is coming from. We'll see if we can track the thing down on the show floor and find out. Update: Thanks to KC for pointing out that we made a little typo here. It is the Vertrek, not the Veritek as we originally spelled it. Our hopes for a Minmay Special Edition have just been dashed. %Gallery-113591%
Chevy Volt named North American Car of the Year
Electric? Hybrid? Series? Parallel? Who cares? The Chevrolet Volt, the very car that helped us flee a soggy and cold Washington D.C. last year, was just named North American Car of the Year at the North American International Auto Show by an independent panel of judges representing major media outlets. It bested other finalists, the Nissan Leaf and the Hyundai Sonata. The Volt has won despite scoring low marks in the swimsuit portion of the competition, but in its acceptance speech the Volt thanked all the little people and indicated it would spend the next 12 months working toward world peace and alternative drivetrain configurations for all.
Porsche unveils 918 RSR, the 767hp hybrid
Prius this ain't. Take a gander at Porsche's 918 RSR, which just rolled onto the company's stage at the 2011 North American International Auto Show. It has a 563hp traditional gasoline engine mounted amidships, with a pair of electric motors powering the front wheels that bring the total power up to a whopping 767. The electric motors are not powered by a set of batteries, as in a traditional hybrid, rather they take their power from an inertial flywheel mounted where the passenger seat would be on a road car and spinning at up to 36,000rpm. That's spun up by momentum when the car brakes and, when the driver hits a button, that momentum is converted to give an acceleratory boost. That's the same setup as the 911 GT3 RSR Hybrid, which ran reasonably successfully last year. Its styling is obviously an extension of the 918 Spyder, with a number of cues taken from the incredibly successful Porsche 917 racer of the early '70s (dig the endplates that look like the 917's iconic fins). At this point Porsche hasn't indicated when this car will make its debut on the track, nor in which classes it will run, but one thing's for clear: this isn't for the road. So, we're a bit disappointed we still haven't any firm details on a production, street 918 -- not that we could have afforded it anyway. %Gallery-113625% %Gallery-113626%
Ford announces C-MAX Hybrid and C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid cars for 2012 release
Ford indicated that CES was simply the right place to debut the Ford Focus Electric, and we'd tend to agree given the company's history of showing off cool stuff at the show. But, perhaps part of that reason is because the company wasn't done with the new car announcements. In Detroit Ford has announced two new flavors of its C-MAX, both coming to the US: hybrid and plug-in hybrid. The C-MAX is a European market compact MPV, basically a tall station wagon that'll comfortably seat five and still leave room for luggage, dogs, or '70s era mainframe systems in the back. More details on both versions, plus the full PR, after the break. %Gallery-113588%
