Would you trade power for efficiency?
Auto Blog: Diesel , MPG , Ford Late last year, we asked our readers if they would be willing to pay $25,000 for a Ford Fiesta that managed 63 U.S. miles per gallon in EU combined cycle testing. Survey says… Yes! The results from our very unscientific poll of admittedly green-minded readers suggests that 64% of those taking part would consider paying a relatively high cost for a high mileage vehicle. Remember, though, that this was right after the sting of record gas prices that greatly impacted the driving habits of millions of Americans. Now, gas is cheap again, and Motor Trend is taking a slightly different tack with a similar question: Would you trade power for 63 miles per gallon? The target of the issue is once again the Ford Fiesta, which in ECOnetic form comes with a 1.6L TDCi turbodiesel under the hood cranking out 88 raging stallions. So, is it worth it? Answer in our new poll below. View Poll [Sources: Motor Trend , Clean Green Cars ] Would you trade power for efficiency? originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Would you trade power for efficiency?
UQM Technologies improves results, only loses $764K in last quarter
Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Hybrid Even in a down economy, things were looking up for UQM Technologies in its most recent fiscal quarter. Lots of interest in its electric drive systems helped the company raise its revenues to $2,873,595, a big jump from the $1,714,858 it recorded a year earlier. The company still lost money but narrowed its losses to $764,101 compared to $1,306,996 in 2007. One of UQM’s more noteworthy customers in 2008, if not its biggest revenue source, was Chrysler. The five electric drive vehicles shown by Chrysler in recent months are all propelled by UQM motors. If Chrysler does succeed in its stated plan to get an electric vehicle in production in 2010, it could be UQM’S first big production program. The full press release of the financial results is after the jump. [Source: UQM Technologies] Continue reading UQM Technologies improves results, only loses $764K in last quarter UQM Technologies improves results, only loses $764K in last quarter originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 30 Jan 2009 09:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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UQM Technologies improves results, only loses $764K in last quarter
Automakers and CARB meet to negotiate CO standards?
Auto Blog: Legislation and Policy , USA According to The Aspen Institute , members of the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club and the Union of Concerned Scientists, along with the California Air Resources Board, have met to hash out their differences with representatives from Ford, General Motors, Honda and Toyota. The topic is the proposed carbon emissions standards . We don’t know much about how the talks are proceeding because all parties have decided to keep the discussions confidential. They have only released the following statement: “The parties succeeded in developing an enhanced understanding of each others’ perspectives and concerns.” The issue of whether California even has the right to set its own air quality standards instead of going along with national policies for fuel efficiency has been a hot topic since the Bush Administration denied California the waiver it would need. Shortly after taking office, President Obama urged the EPA to reconsider California’s waiver. If California is granted this right, a large group of states are expected to adopt the legislation as well, which would have the effect of raising fuel efficiency requirements without actually modifying them, as carbon dioxide is one of the byproducts emitted through the burning fossil fuels in our automobiles. Expect to hear plenty more on the issue in the coming weeks. [Source: The Aspen Institute via Automotive News - sub. req'd] Automakers and CARB meet to negotiate CO 2 standards? originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 30 Jan 2009 08:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Automakers and CARB meet to negotiate CO standards?
U-Haul jumps onto the car sharing club bandwagon
Auto Blog: Transportation Alternatives U-haul has long been one of the top choices for people that needed a truck or trailer to move bulky stuff across town or across the country. You could easily pick up a moving van on one coast, load it up and drop it off on the opposite coast. Now the company is branching out into renting smaller transport for those that only need to move a couple of bodies – in the passenger seats, of course. U Car Share has been operating for a while in Madison WI, Portland, OR and Portland, ME. The most recent branch just opened at the University of Berkeley in California. Like ZipCar and other car sharing services, users pay a $50 sign-up fee and then have access to cars at $9/hour for small cars and up to $14.95 for a van including gas and insurance. People who are already members of another service can actually join U Car Share without having to pay the sign-up fee. Members can reserve a car online and get a smartcard that gives them access to the car. Every car has a gas card and members get a PIN so they can fill the car. [Source: SustainableBusiness .com, U Car Share ] U-Haul jumps onto the car sharing club bandwagon originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 30 Jan 2009 08:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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U-Haul jumps onto the car sharing club bandwagon
The stuff of nightmares: Biomass-fueled autonomous robot
Auto Blog: Emerging Technologies , EV/Plug-in Cyclone Power Technologies, which we’ve previously featured for its engine that runs on waste heat , has recently been awarded a contract to build the first stages of an Energetically Autonomous Tactical Robot (seriously, eater?) for a project that’s sponsored by DARPA. Basically, as we understand it, what we have here is a robot that can gather its own biomass fuel, deposit it into its own external combustion chamber and recharge itself. Seriously, is this a good thing? The robot’s power source could come from such diverse sources as waste products like wood chips or grass clippings, vegetable oil or even gasoline, diesel, kerosene and alcohol. All of this will take place outside the actual robot, as the radial 6-cylinder 16-horsepower Cyclone Waste Heat Engine will recharge the robot’s battery pack through the use of a generator. If successful, such a device could have wide ranging civil and military applications. We shudder to consider all of them. [Source: Green Car Congress ] The stuff of nightmares: Biomass-fueled autonomous robot originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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The stuff of nightmares: Biomass-fueled autonomous robot
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Leave a commentNotice anything new around here? ABG v2.5
Auto Blog: AutoblogGreen Exclusive So, we’re pretty excited to enter, with you, into AutoblogGreen Version 2.5. It’s a fitting time to shift to a sleeker, better AutoblogGreen, what with it being our two-and-three-quarter year anniverary (that’s close to 2.5, right?). This is our second visual overhaul, and we hope you like the cleaner front page and the bigger pictures we can now bring you. Don’t worry if you’ve gotten used to our old look; everything operates pretty much exactly like the blog you’re used to. The best change is that our page is now in a two-column format, which means more room for pictures. Our high-resolution galleries have always given you large, glorious pictures, but now you get (some of) that same effect on the main page. We’ve moved the featured stories links to the top of the page and also on the right, there, with the breaking news box. Let us know what you think in theCar Blog Green, and if you happen to notice something that has stopped working, please say something. Also, all of our previous posts are still in the archives. All of the links to older stories will still work. Our look may be new, but the information we’re here to share doesn’t go out of date ( well… ). Thanks for being such regular readers in up to this point; we look forward to continuing to provide you with the freshest, best clean car news from here on out. Notice anything new around here? ABG v2.5 originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 18:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Audi claims best in class mileage for Q5, still can’t touch the TDI
Auto Blog: Diesel , MPG , Audi Audi’s new Q5 mid-size SUV goes on sale here in the U.S. in March and the company is touting its fuel efficiency as a selling point in these lean economic times. Unfortunately, at launch, the U.S.-market Q5 will only have one powertrain option, the direct injected 3.2L V6 with a 6-speed automatic transmission. In this configuration, the Q5 is rated at 18 mpg city and 23 mpg highway. While this beats any of the non-hybrid comparable all-wheel-drive models, it’s not particularly impressive compared to the diesel models available overseas. In Europe, for example, the Q5 can be ordered with either a 170 hp 2.0L four cylinder diesel or the same 3.0L V6 that is going into Q7 any minute now. The 2.0L TDI is rated at 40.6 mpg (U.S.) while the V6 oil burner comes in at 35.6 mpg (U.S.). During last fall’s trans-continental Audi Mileage Marathon , the Q5 TDIs with the V6 averaged between 33 and 38 mpg, putting them on a par with the considerably smaller Ford Escape hybrid. Audi officials have hinted that the Q5 3.0 TDI will eventually make it to the U.S. market, likely early in 2010, but nothing has been confirmed yet. [Source: Audi] Continue reading Audi claims best in class mileage for Q5, still can’t touch the TDI Audi claims best in class mileage for Q5, still can’t touch the TDI originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 17:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Audi claims best in class mileage for Q5, still can’t touch the TDI
Posted in Auto Green | a-selling-point, audi q5, audiq5, class-mileage, diesel-or-the, economic-times-, entry, touch-the-tdi | Leave a commentUK government wants £2.5 billion auto loans used for green projects
Auto Blog: Legislation and Policy , UK The UK government has promised a series of loans to automakers and suppliers in Britain that’s supposed to help them navigate the tough economic conditions that the industry now finds itself in. According to Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, “The actions we and the automotive industry will now be taking together will help the industry build the bridge to a greener future for the auto sector.” How so? That’s a good question, and one that doesn’t yet seem to have a conclusive answer quite yet. Loans could be used by automakers to add eco-friendly updates to aging plants or for research and development costs into new technologies. Suppliers could use the money to create new parts that automakers would use to increase efficiency. According to the Financial Times , though, it’s not likely that any companies that are looking for a piece of the loans will have a hard time finding green programs to justify the government’s investment. [Source: Financial Times ] UK government wants £2.5 billion auto loans used for green projects originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 16:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Posted in Auto Green | a-selling-point, auto, auto bailout, britain, british auto bailout, britishbailout, business, enterprise, green, money, u.k.bailout | Leave a commentTesla gives up on San Jose move
Auto Blog: EV/Plug-in , Manufacturing/Plants , Tesla Motors , Green Daily Click on the Tesla Roadsters Hot Wheels for a high res gallery Tesla warned in early December that without a $350 million loan from the federal government, the Model S sedan will be delayed and the company’s planned move to San Jose, California to open a new HQ and manufacturing plant wouldn’t move forward. Guess what? It’s looking like it won’t happen . The problem, as you might expect, is money, and the fact that Tesla couldn’t raise enough money to finance the deal. Tesla spokesperson Rachel Konrad said that, “We abandoned that because the VC financing environment became so tight and difficult.” One problem with the previously-selected location is that it’s a greenfield site, where Tesla would build a totally new plant. With the low-interest loans that Tesla is applying for (about $400 million total, $250 million for the Model S plant and $150 million for a battery/powertrain facility), the government wants to see brownfield sites get developed. Konrad said that Tesla is looking to keep its headquarters in Silicon Valley and to search for a brownfield site where they can build the Model S. Plug-in aren’t dead in San Jose though. Recently, Coulomb Technologies installed EV charging stations in the city . Gallery: First Drive: Tesla Roadster [Source: KLIV , New Mexico Business Weekly ] Tesla gives up on San Jose move originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 15:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Tesla gives up on San Jose move
Posted in Auto Green | a-selling-point, auto bailout, britishbailout, government, green, money, san jose, tesla, tesla san jose, tesla-motors, teslamodels, u.k.bailout | Leave a commentAerocivic gets a website, deer should now be safer
Auto Blog: Green Culture , MPG , Honda , Green Daily Ahhh, what $400 and a few hundred hours of work can get you. The ever-popular Aerocivic has graced our pages a few times in the past, but now modder Mike Turner is sharing his experiences with the world, first-person style. Turner has set up a website describing, in detail, the changes that he’s made to his 1992 Honda Civic CX to get it up to around 95 mpg. That’s the kind of thing we knew about already. When Turner is writing about his own car and experiences, we learn new details. For example, Turnser says that bugs and snow float over the car undisturbed, leaves barely rustle when he drives over them, and “the low sloped front of the car scoops [deer] up and over the top of the car with minimal damage to both deer and car.” I wonder if the Google Maps people will be calling him soon. In any case, the Aerocivic site is truly an enthusiasts’ source for people who want to know what it’s like to live in the aerodynamic future. Well worth checking out. [Source: Aerocivic via Treehugger ] Aerocivic gets a website, deer should now be safer originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green|Car Blog Green
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Aerocivic gets a website, deer should now be safer
Posted in Auto Green | a-few-hundred, a-selling-point, google, green-daily, miketurner, money, san jose, tesla, u.k.bailout | Leave a commentGet Approved!
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