by Joseph Szczesny | Jan 10, 2011
Toyota is setting up what it has dubbed a Collaborative Safety Research Center at the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. “Toyota’s new safety research center will work with leading North American universities and other partners on safety...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 10, 2011
Chevrolet is betting it can make some big noise with its new small car, the 2012 Sonic. The new subcompact is the replacement for the unloved Chevrolet Aveo, a car that seemed almost invisible against the Japanese models dominating the small car segment, such as the...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 10, 2011
What’s the difference between a facelift and a complete redesign? Apparently not much, at least not in the case of the 2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class, which has undergone a dramatic transformation touching on 2,000 separate parts, from sheet metal to the smallest nuts...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 10, 2011
Drum roll, please? And the name for the sedan that could determine the future of Volkswagen’s U.S. franchise? Passat. Say that again? Passat. The all-new 4-door, until now known by its codename, NMS, or New Midsize Sedan, is getting a familiar name, the same one...
by Joseph Szczesny | Jan 10, 2011
Saab has replaced its top U.S. executive by naming Matthias Seidl interim Chief Operating Officer for Detroit-based Saab Cars North America, effective immediately. Seidl replaces Michael Colleran, who resigned “to pursue further career opportunities,” the...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 7, 2011
This is the year of the electric vehicle, or so proponents would like to believe, as a wave of battery cars make their debut and the first actually roll into showrooms. Following last month’s debut of the low-volume Transit Connect Electric delivery van, Ford Motor...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 7, 2011
Reports of the minivan’s demise have been greatly exaggerated and, if anything, the proliferation of new product, such as the all-new Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna, and updates of the Chrysler vans, have started pumping new life into the niche. But other players...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 7, 2011
Say what? A new study finds that driving too fast – and for too long – with the top down on your convertible can damage your hearing. And even if you’re not driving all that fast, running alongside a truck, motorcycle or muscle car can expose you to “noise spikes”...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 7, 2011
With the touch of a button on a smartphone the owner of a 2012 Ford Focus Electric will be able to program the car to begin charging, pre-heat the cabin on a cold day – or even find which pizza parlors are within range when the battery is already partially run down....
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 7, 2011
The roll-out of electric vehicles is likely to be a slow one, most experts agree, because of the high cost, limited range and long charging times required by even the most advanced lithium-ion batteries. But the Chicago-based Argonne National Laboratory has apparently...
by Joseph Szczesny | Jan 7, 2011
Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. which operates, the Dollar and Thrifty rental car fleets, has implemented a strict no smoking policy in all of its vehicles. Smoking is now forbidden in any Dollar or Thrifty rental cars. Both rental fleets are now 100% smoke-free...
by Bryan Laviolette | Jan 7, 2011
Isn’t this what Buick always should have been, or at least could have been? Instead General Motors was content to build a series of velour-encrusted boulevardiers, content with the 60-and-over set, never offering anything that a young professional would even consider....
