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BMW's Emergency Stop Assistant halts your vehicle if you can't

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 8th 2009 at 9:58AM

While it may seem as if BMW and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in Germany just hate seniors, we kind of doubt that's the prevailing mentality behind the admittedly brilliant Emergency Stop Assistant. Said technology is being testing as part of the Smart Senior project, and in theory, it will be able to detect medical emergencies, activate hazard lights and autonomously pull the car over safely if the driver cannot. Of course, we're still anxiously awaiting details on how the system plans on detecting said calamities and figuring out how to pull over without crashing, but one thing's for sure: OnStar just got a lot more outdated.

GM says bankruptcy won't affect the Volt, but how much say does it have?

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 1st 2009 at 1:11PM

As General Motors finally caved this morning, waved the white flag and filed for bankruptcy, those following electric cars immediately wondered what this all would mean for the long-awaited Volt. For years now, GM has steadfastly affirmed that it was moving forward with production regardless of what else was going on within the company and the economy at large. According to Technology Review, a GM spokesperson confirmed again this morning that "the filing will have no impact on the company's plans to start selling the Volt at the end of next year." That said, we have to wonder how much such a statement really means; reports have stated that the US government may up holding as much as 60 percent of the company, and if the primary goal is to bring the outfit back to profitability as soon as possible, Obama and Company may not feel that pouring even more into the high-priced Volt is a good idea. In related news, we hear Tesla is still taking orders...

Update: GM has pushed out an official statement that (in a few words) also suggests that the Volt is still on track.

METROBuddy electric car debuts, kind of resembles a mail van

by Darren Murph, posted May 14th 2009 at 8:52PM

Looking from behind, one might assume that the METROBuddy is an electric car with style. Unfortunately, those hopes are dashed when peeking the whole whip from the side, as you suddenly become overwhelmed with hints of USPS mail van, garbage truck and a rather large protractor. Design gripes aside, our good pals over at AutoblogGreen were able to sneak a peek at the bantam automobile, which supposedly packs a range of around 50 to 75 miles on a full charge. There's been no mention yet of a price or global release (don't get your hopes up on the latter), but feel free to have a better look around in the vid just past the break.

[Via AutoblogGreen]

Continue reading METROBuddy electric car debuts, kind of resembles a mail van

German researchers show off steering wheel-mounted OLED

by Donald Melanson, posted May 12th 2009 at 1:49PM

We've already seen OLED displays that promise to squeeze into a rearview mirror and other parts of a vehicle, and it looks like Germany's CARO research association has now found yet another place to stick one: right in the middle of the steering wheel. As you can see above, that would effectively replace the center emblem in the steering wheel (the gauges are just for show, apparently), which the researchers say would open up a whole host of new design possibilities for auto manufacturers -- for instance, having the center emblem light up when the door opens. They're also quick to point out that the thin nature of the OLED wouldn't affect the airbag, and power consumption would, of course, be at a minimum. As you might have guessed, however, there's no word on any automakers that have signed up just yet, although CARO does also have a new highly-readable, orange emitting OLED suitable for in-dash use for those looking to keep things a bit more conventional.

Miles Electric's totally electric family sedan one step closer to existence

by Laura June, posted May 5th 2009 at 11:29AM

Miles Electric has confirmed that it's working on a family sedan-sized all electric car for release in North America sometime next year. The car -- which will be released under a different, unknown brandname -- will be a first for the company, which specializes in neighborhood cars that only go up to about 25 miles per hour. The sedan will have a top speed of around 80 miles per hour, and a 100 mile range. It will also require 8-12 hours to fully recharge its dead lithium-ion battery. Miles is currently running the vehicle though crash tests, and expects to see about 300 of them on the road in California sometime next year. The going rate for one of these? About $45,000.

Tesla-powered Smart fortwo gives rides, ignites imaginations

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 25th 2009 at 10:11AM

We already knew that Daimler was looking to Tesla for its battery know-how within the electric Smart, and evidently the two have already put together a working prototype. Our best buds over at AutoblogGreen have hosted up a video and photo gallery of a Tesla-powered Smart fortwo which was recently spotted at a heretofore unnamed automotive show. Amazingly, the vehicle was actually outfitted with the motor and gear box (version 1.0) from an original Roadster, though the incommodious nature of the show floor made it impossible to peel out and really cause a scene. Check the read link for all the multimedia goodies.

Standardized EV plug could be adopted within months, says GM

by Ross Miller, posted Apr 21st 2009 at 9:38PM

Here's a more reassuring timeline for that proposed standardized plug for electric vehicles. The SAE J1772 Task Force-developed charging system, based on an initial design by supplier Yazaki, is now at Underwriters Labs for certification. That's scheduled to be done by the end of May and, if all things go according to plan, it can be adopted for use in the next few months. Speaking to Autoblog Green, General Motors' Gery Kissel listed his company, Chrysler, Ford, Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Tesla among those participating or supporting the standard. He also said the we-swear-it's-coming-this-year Chevy Volt should be equipped with the new plug, and Tesla's reportedly pledged to adopt it for current plans and retrofit its older models. Things are starting to look up for the EV industry.

Subaru yanks concept label, begins testing Stella plug-in EV

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 20th 2009 at 8:21AM

Anyone that follows the automobile sector with any semblance of regularity would know that quite a few concepts never make it beyond the drawing board. Thankfully, Subaru's Stella is one of the lucky ones. Fuji Heavy Industries, parent company and maker of Subaru automobiles, has just announced its plans to begin testing prototypes of its Subaru plug-in Stella electric vehicle, which will be introduced in Japan this summer. Furthermore, the company has managed to boost power output from 40kW in the previous iteration to 47kW, and it also stripped away some unnecessary weight and fine-tuned the output management system. There's no mention of a price or expected launch date in North America, but you'll never stop us from hoping the answer to the latter is "soon."

Automakers agree on common plug to recharge electric vehicles

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 19th 2009 at 4:24PM

Just hours after General Motors put forth a proposal for a standardized plug for electric vehicles, in flies this. German energy firm RWE has stated that a cadre of respected automakers and energy firms have all come together in agreement on a three-point, 400-volt plug that will enable electric cars the world over to be recharged anywhere, regardless of which recharging station they stop at. Caroline Reichert, an RWE spokeswoman, noted that the idea here is to ensure that "a car can be recharged in Italy in exactly the same way as in Denmark, Germany or France." We're told that the agreement includes nods of acceptance from the likes of Volkswagen, BMW, Ford, General Motors, Fiat, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Eon, Vattenfall, EDF, Npower, Endesa and Enel, and while there's no time frame for when it'll be introduced, we're pretty stoked to hear that at least something has been decided upon.

GM proposes standardized plug for electric vehicles

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 17th 2009 at 8:11AM

Say what you will about General Motors (okay, so maybe you should say it under your breath), but there's no denying the brilliance of this idea. On the company's FastLane blog, one Gery Kissel explains that engineers and suits will be meeting up next week to discuss the standardization of common components that will hopefully be installed in forthcoming electric vehicles. Notably, the SAE J1772 Task Force will be responsible for designing a plug that links each plug-in vehicle to an "ecosystem," ensuring that drivers can pull into any charging station from Key West to Neah Bay and see a socket that fits their ride. Specifically, the group is being charged with defining a "common electric vehicle conductive charging system architecture for all major automakers in North America," but it remains to be seen if said standard can be hammered out before the Volt's not-to-be-missed 2010 introduction.

Video: Terrafugia's flying car lifts off

by Joseph L. Flatley, posted Mar 19th 2009 at 6:31AM

We've had a lot of fun with Terrafugia over the last year or so, but we weren't exactly holding our breath in anticipation of the Transition's maiden flight. That said, we're definitely psyched to hear that the "roadable aircraft" went airborne in a super-secret test flight that took place in the early hours of March 5th at Plattsburgh International Airport. The vehicle left the ground for a good thirty-seven seconds, traveling some 3,000 feet. At a press conference today, the company's CEO Carl Dietrich remarked that "with this achievement, Terrafugia has set the stage for personal aviation." Which, considering how folks light up I-95 on an average workday, might at first blush seem somewhat unsettling -- but to each his own, right? According to the company, more than forty people have put down the $10,000 deposit for the new aircraft, which -- if all goes according to plan -- will be hitting the road sometime in 2011. Videos after the break.

[Via Slashdot]

Continue reading Video: Terrafugia's flying car lifts off

Production Fisker Karma gets revealed, shakes that sexy thang

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 4th 2008 at 10:10PM

Unlike another automaker out there, Fisker Automotive's eco-friendly vehicle looks a whole lot like the concept, and while the Tesla Roadster is certainly a sexy beast, we're having an exceptionally difficult time taming our fondness for this ride. The $~~80,000~~ $87,000 plug-in hybrid has been officially revealed ahead of its "debut" at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, but sadly, it seems that the '09 ship date has already slipped to "late 2010." We can't say looking at the gorgeous pictures make that fact any less depressing, but they're all there in the read link if you care to indulge.

[Via CNET]

Chrysler's Web Edition vehicle package: includes WiFi, iPod touch and a Dell Mini 9

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 20th 2008 at 8:52PM

Chrysler has been toying with in-car connectivity for months now, so it's really no shock to see the next logical step being taken. At the San Francisco Auto Show this week, the automaker is set to showcase a "Web Edition" package, which would theoretically be available as a dealer-installed option for most Chrysler, Jeep, and Dodge vehicles. The bundle would include an Autonet Mobile router (branded as Uconnect Web), a Dell Mini 9, 8GB iPod touch, Sony PSP and an Eye-Fi WiFi SD card; couple that with one year of internet service and you've got everything that makes up the $1,999 asking price. Reportedly, a slimmed down option will go for $1,100 and only include the router, service and Mini 9, though there's no indication of when it'll be hitting new whips. Nor if Chrysler will survive long enough to tell us.

Fujitsu development enables real-time wraparound vehicle view

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 17th 2008 at 2:00AM

Fujitsu and automotive safety advancements go hand-in-hand, so it's no shock whatsoever to hear that the outfit is fixing to showcase a new technology that enables wraparound view of vehicles in real-time. The new video-processing technology "adapts to different driving situations, enabling the driver to peripherally view the entire surroundings of a vehicle, from the point of view and field of view that is most appropriate for each driving situation." Obviously, such an inclusion would come in handy when parking downtown, passing on a narrow street and / or watching your back should real life ever mimic something straight out of GTA IV. Unfortunately, there's no word as to when an automaker will begin infusing its automobiles with this here invention, but our insurance premiums are begging for it to be sooner rather than later.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Ferrari's Scuderia Spider 16M to integrate customized iPod touch

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 10th 2008 at 2:28AM

We've already seen one luxury car concept utilize an iPhone for displaying automotive information as well as managing the entertainment end of things, but the photo you see above isn't just conceptual. In fact, Ferrari will build 499 of its ultra-limited Scuderia Spider 16Ms, and for those who choose, it can be outfitted with an iPod touch dock right in the center of the dashboard. The 16GB touch will feature Ferrari themes, images and sounds, and of course, fortunate buyers can remove the PMP after having it parked in the garage. There's no word yet on how pricey the iPod touch upgrade is nor how expensive the whip itself will be, but the standard iteration of the car rings up at $277,000. You know, just so you have a frame of reference.

[Via Engadget Spanish]