by Joseph Szczesny | May 24, 2012
With both Democrats and Republicans in rare agreement, autonomous driving is coming a lot closer to reality in California. By a vote of 37-0, the California State Senate approved a bill that would next establish guidelines on and oversight of self-driving vehicles....
by Joseph Szczesny | May 24, 2012
General Motors hopes the Olympics will charge up its electric vehicle program. While BMW is the official automobile of the quadrennial games, GM has teamed up with Hertz to give visitors coming into London for the games a chance to test out its new Vauxhall Ampera. ...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 24, 2012
Quality, reliability and dependability have become the price of admission in today’s auto industry. It takes quite a bit more to stand out in the increasingly crowded market, according to a new study, which finds the Cadillac Escalade the top model in terms of...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 24, 2012
Even as it gets set to launch sales of its new M6 model, BMW is looking at ways to further expand its high-performance brand-within-a-brand, a senior executive told TheDetroitBureau.com. Once limited to a handful of limited-production offerings, BMW now offers M...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 23, 2012
By most accounts, the U.S. auto industry has been one of the major engines of the American economic recovery, car sales helping offset slow housing demand and other economic indicators. But are those other factors now starting to give potential car buyers the jitters?...
by Bryan Laviolette | May 23, 2012
The best way to explain Sync and MyFordTouch is to compare it to another vehicle. The week before we drove a Ford Edge with the updated MyFordTouch, we drove an expensive luxury car from another manufacturer. With that car, just syncing a phone with Bluetooth was a...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 23, 2012
What’s in a brand name? If it’s the right one the answer is “plenty.” According to a new survey by Interbrand, which annually tracks the value of major corporate brands, Apple’s brand is worth $182.9 billion. Apple leads the list in Interbrand’s 2012 BrandZ Top 100...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 23, 2012
The push to partner up continues to sweep through the global auto industry, Mazda and Fiat signing a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding that will let them share in the development and production of an all-new roadster. The MOU means Fiat’s Alfa Romeo brand will...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 23, 2012
Ford is out of hock, so to speak. With Moody’s Investor’s Services upgrading the maker’s debt to “investment grade,” the second-largest automaker has done more than just fulfill the key goal of CEO Alan Mulally. It regains control of assets that include its...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 22, 2012
General Motors has reversed course and will bring an all-new version of that hip-hop segment favorite, the Cadillac Escalade, to market in early 2014. Worried that the big luxury SUV might hurt the updated image Caddy is trying to craft for itself – and questioning...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 22, 2012
“I never heard it coming.” That phrase could soon apply to the motorcycle cop that pulls you over for speeding. The authorities have always valued stealth, and their unmarked cars will soon be joined by a new weapon, a nearly silent electric bike from Zero...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 22, 2012
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is the latest to wade into the debris trying to figure out the cause of a fire in a Texas garage, earlier this month, that consumed a Fisker Karma and several other luxury vehicles. The conflagration was originally...
