by Joseph Szczesny | May 19, 2011
Johnson Controls Inc., a leading vendor in electric car technology, is suing to break up its joint venture with Saft, a French battery maker. “Johnson Controls and Saft have a fundamental disagreement about the future direction and appropriate scope of the joint...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 19, 2011
Long written off by much of the American public, Detroit’s Big Three automakers have been gaining sales and market share in recent months, in part due to the accolades the makers are receiving for their newest products. So, the results of the 2011 Vehicle...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 19, 2011
Despite all the breathless headlines and accolades, sales of a new generation of battery cars have gotten off to a slow start – in part due to the consciously slow ramp-up of production by makers like General Motors and Nissan. But more of the vehicles will be rolling...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 19, 2011
Chrysler is expected to confirm today it has lined up new financing that will allow it to repay next week the nearly $7 billion in government loans it received as part of its 2009 bankruptcy. Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne has said he had hoped to repay the $5.9...
by Joseph Szczesny | May 19, 2011
Ford Motor Co. is looking at ways to expand the services available through SYNC, its in-car information and communications system, possibly using the onboard technology to deliver up-to-date medical information to the driver or passengers – even monitoring the health...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 18, 2011
As former General Motors Chairman Bob Lutz liked to say, “there’s no silver bullet” when it comes to finding the cleaner, more fuel-efficient technology for tomorrow’s cars. Instead, he and other industry experts believe that, over the next decade or two, we’ll likely...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 18, 2011
With fuel prices surging to near-record levels, it’s understandable buyers look for any bargain they can find, especially in California, where motorists typically pay more than almost anywhere else in the country. A number of smartphone apps and Internet services have...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 18, 2011
Despite near-record fuel prices, Americans have yet to make a significant switch from gasoline to electric propulsion, whether in the form of conventional hybrids or battery-electric vehicles. So far this year, in fact, advanced electric vehicles, like the Nissan Leaf...
by Bryan Laviolette | May 18, 2011
The U.S. Department of Transportation will host six clinics across the country to introduce drivers to vehicle-to-vehicle communications aimed at reducing traffic accidents and saving lives. The first clinic will be at Michigan International Speedway in August. MIS...
by Joseph Szczesny | May 17, 2011
Despite the shortages facing Japanese automakers like Toyota and Nissan, the U.S. new car market appears poised to experience steady sales growth after one of the worst downturns since the Great Depression. But this rising tide, at least, won’t float all boats...
by Joseph Szczesny | May 17, 2011
The Patent Board has ranked General Motors as the top innovator of 182 companies in its quarterly automotive and transportation industry scorecard. The Board analyzes intellectual property performance across 17 industries and determines the leader in each sector based...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 17, 2011
Despite strong opposition from the industry, Americans weary of watching gas prices soar now want a near doubling of automotive fuel economy standards. Nearly two-thirds of those polled by Opinion Research Group favored raising the Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or...
