Category Archives: Automotives

Obama’s Auto Industry Task Force Drives Imports Like Everyone Else

February 23, 2009 at 1:35 pm

(Source: Jalopnik.com) 

Of the 10 members of President Obama‘s Auto Industry task force, only two are known to own American cars, two don’t own a car, and at least one has a French car in the family.

The majority of the task force, tasked with saving the auto industry, drives Hondas, Mazdas or Volvos. Many of the Honda vehicles are actually built in the US and both Mazda and Volvo are, technically, owned by Ford. Despite the rather bland choices, there are two revelations we couldn’t help but appreciate as car fans:

1. Our Vice President owns a 1967 Corvette, which he probably puts few miles on given his love of Amtrak.

2. Diana Farrell, the deputy National Economic Council director, is currently without a car but her husband has a 1985 Peugeot 505 S, which we take to mean a Peugeot 505 Turbo S and not the crappy gas/diesel 505 S. If it’s the S Turbo we’re talking about a crazy gearhead. If it’s an S we’re talking about someone who doesn’t want to part with an old car. Or maybe it is a base S with an SR20DET swap (we look for hope where we can find it).

Click here to read the full article.

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FOURTH JOINT MILITARY/CIVILIAN CONFERENCE ON INTELLIGENT VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

February 23, 2009 at 11:48 am

The Fourth Joint Military/Civilian Conference on Intelligent Vehicle Technology Transfer (IVTT) is sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA); and it is supported by the Department of Transportation Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (DOT ITS JPO), the Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC), the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI); the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America); and it is hosted by the Intelligent Systems Division of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (ISD NIST).

Announcement & information for fourth conference-19-feb-09-1The Conference is unclassified and open to all interested participants from government, industry, academia, and media, whether associated with the defense or automotive industries. All attendees must register in advance of the Conference (there is no provision for on-site registration) at:  www.Intelligent-Vehicle.com

Conference Dates: Wednesday and Thursday, 1-2 April 2009

Time: Please see the agenda below.

Location: The National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland, and the Holiday Inn, Gaithersburg, Maryland (please see directions below)

Conference Fee: The conference fee of $300 includes Proceedings, 2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 1 Dinner, 4 Refreshment Breaks, and a tour of the NIST Autonomous Intelligent Vehicle Laboratory.

Accommodations: Are the responsibility of the participant (see information below) Enclosed: Announcement with information on: Conference Purpose, Background, Agenda, Registration, Directions and Accommodations

Please RSVP with your Registration by 25 March 09.  Please register directly at our website:  www.Intelligent-Vehicle.com .  Please register early to ensure admittance; participation is limited.

If you have any questions, please contact:

Dr. Robert Finkelstein Robotic Technology Inc

301-983-4194 Office;

301-983-3921 Fax;

 

301-980-8402 Cell;  

E-mail:  BobF@RoboticTechnologyInc.com

Event Brochure

[ipaper id=12769813]

 

 

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Telematics Newsletter – Feb 16 – Feb 22, 2009

February 23, 2009 at 11:27 am

 

telematics logo
Telematics Newsletter: 16Feb09 – 22Feb09
TV fitted with a GPS device on the track of illegal waste disposal in Africa    21/02/2009
Tonnes of toxic waste collected from British municipal dumps is being sent illegally to Africa in flagrant breach of this country’s obligation to ensure its rapidly growing mountain of defunct televisions, computers and gadgets are disposed of safely. … read more

RFID technology to develop m! ore effective tools for screening of food products    21/02/2009
The EPC, Electronic Product Code, is a technology of radio frequency that enables you to make a full and reliable screening, covering the entire supply chain.  The EPC number is global and unique. Available in Brazil since 2002, it accommodates the information identifier of Global Trade Item (GTIN), which identifies the products in the GS1 System. … read more

Toyota to Join Public ITS Tests in Tokyo    21/02/2009
Tokyo, Feb 19, 2009 – (JCN Newswire) – TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATIO! N (TMC) announces it will demonstrate its vehicle-infrastructure cooperative systems on public roads in Tokyo from February 25 to 28 in a joint intelligent transport systems (ITS) verification effort sponsored by Japan’s private-public ITS Promotion Council. … read more

The face behind the GPS voice finds fame    21/02/2009
If you’ve ever used a GPS device for directions, you might already be acquainted with Karen Jacobsen. As the voice of “Australian-English Karen” in Garmin GPS products, she calmly instructs harried drivers to turn left, go 1.8 miles or “recalculate” their trips every day … read more

Latin American drug gangs use GPS to outwit police    21/02/2009
GUATEMALA CITY, Feb 19 (Reuters) – Drug smugglers are using sophisticated devices like satellite positioning systems to outwit police and move more South American cocaine by sea, a senior U.S. official said on Thursday. … read more

Aepona partners with UbiEst to offer LBS to its wireless carriers worldwide     21/02/2009
This week at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Ubiest and Aepona have signed an agreement under which UbiEst will provide its leading suite of location-based applications for Aepona to integrate with its award-winning Universal Service Platform and take to its mobile operator customers. … read more

PHDCC presents pre-budget Delhi govt    21/02/2009
New Delhi, Feb 18: The PHD Chamber of Commerce has presented a pre-Budget Memorandum to Finance Minister Ashok Walia. As per the memorandum, efficient transport, traffic management, trade and investment promotion policy for Delhi, upgrading water supply, e-governance and administrative reforms should be the focus areas for Delhi. … read more

CRRI to forward suggestions to make Delhi pedestrian-friendly     21/02/2009
New Delhi, Feb 18: Assuring that it was committed to making Delhi roads pedestrian-friendly, the Government today said it has asked road researchers to come up with viable options “as soon as possible” after rejecting some suggestions forwarded by them. … read more! 

Microsoft is expanding and investing in Thailand    21/02/2009
Microsoft is considering expanding its research and development capabilities in Thailand in various sectors, notably software development, high-performance computing and mobile computing, according to Microsoft (Thailand)’s Managing Director, Patama Chantaruck. … read more

Vehicle tracking leader calls for telematics standards initiative    20/02/2009
Vehicle tracking specialist, Navman Wireless is calling on the government to protect businesses against unscrupulous telematics operators. The UK’s largest manufacturer of tracking, messaging and navigation equipment believes the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) should establish a TrustMark initiative for the industry. … read more

GLONASS by 2010 will become a real competitor to the American GPS (NAVSTAR)    20/02/2009
On Friday 13 February in the Information Agency «Interfax» held a press conference on «Prospects of development of Russia’s orbital group of navigation and communication satellites». Before reporters were made by the General Designer and General Director of JSC «Information satellite systems» of Academician MF Testoedov Nicolai, General Director of FSUE «Satellite Communications» Alexey Ostapchuk and Head of the Federal Space Agency Anatoly Shilov. … read more

Dmitry Medvedev signed the federal law on navigation activities    20/02/2009
Federal law establishes the legal framework for implementation in the Russian Federation, the navigation activities aimed at creating conditions for meeting the requirements of navigation, and service! s within the area of navigational activities. … read more

Mumbai cops in US with GPS and satphone, FBI helping retrieve data    19/02/2009
New Delhi : Technical experts of the FBI are examining the Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment and satellite phones used by the Mumbai attackers to retrieve information that the terrorists might have deleted before the instruments fell into the hands of Indian investigators. … read more

Pharos, Inventec Unveil New Line of GPS Smartphones    19/02/2009
Pharos and Taiwanese hardware maker Inventec on Saturday announced three new smartphones armed with Pharos GPS navigation software and travel information running on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6.1 OS. … read more

Find love with GPS    19/02/2009
A Valentine’s Day, it seems they are all out. Lovers. All walking with flowers, kissing on park on benches. Only wander a few souls wander in pain, in search of their half. Twi! ns of Vésinet, Wael and Sami Chahrour have thought of them with a partner, they created the Zoda, a sort of GPS for love. … read more

Black box to prevent death on the roads    19/02/2009
TIM, Telecom Italia and Mac&Nil have developed Remote Angel to help the number of deaths following car accidents. … read more

Control-Alt Lock the Car     19/02/2009
WHY stop at downloading traff! ic and news to the dashboard? Why not download your own software applications to the family sedan? … read more

Cisco to build Bangalore roadmap    16/02/2009
BANGALORE: The Karnataka government and the US-based networking technologies major Cisco Systems will jointly develop a roadmap for a sustainable Bangalore CityThe state government and the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the subject in the presence of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and Cisco chief executive John Chambers. … read more
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Takanobu Ito To Succeed Takeo Fukui As Honda CEO

February 23, 2009 at 11:13 am

 

(Source: Jalopnik.com) 

Takanobu Ito, has been tapped to succeed Takeo Fukui as the next president and CEO of Honda Motor Co. starting in June.

Takanobu Ito, currently the head of global automotive operations at Honda Motor Co., has been tapped as the automaker’s next president and CEO starting in June.

Click here to read the full article.

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NPR’s Car Talk – Feb 21, 2009

February 22, 2009 at 11:17 pm

(Source: NPR’s Car Talk)

Show Open Topic: Auto Mechanics Ranking in New Gallup Survey on Trustworthiness
Call 1: Chana, , MA
1994 Mercury Tracer
This is Chana’s first car ever! Her dear old dad says she needs to warm it up 20 minutes before driving. Is he right?
Call 2: Seth, Little Rock, AR
1995 Mazda Millenia
The car is making a clicking sound when he turns right. He had the CV axles replaced, then did a brake job himself–did he cause it?
Call 3: Kathy, , PA
1985 Toyota Corolla
dump/keep…. husband??s car, needs a lot of work, trying to convince him to Should she keep this car or dump it? Her mechanic is telling her to get rid of it. But her husband isn’t convinced. What to do?

Last Week’s Puzzler Answer:
The Quonset Hut Mistake.
Call 4: Rupa, , OH
Mazda 323
The brakes screech like she??s killing a cat. It happens after its parked all day in a lot. It only happens for the first 5 seconds and it doesn??t happen in the morning.
Call 5: Daniel, , NY
2000 Volkswagen Beetle
He’s finally found the perfect car! It’s got headroom, buttroom, access, egress. After much research, he’s found that the new VW Bug is the best for the proportionally challenged.
Call 6: Rich, , NJ
1993 Ford Explorer
Thermostat problem. He’s not getting enough heat, and the temp gauge doesn??t move off C.

This Week’s Puzzler:
The not-so perfect ??perfect?? used car
Call 7: Joan, , FL
Not Specified Not Specified
Stump the Chumps- Joan went to Madagascar and had a Geo waiting for her there. She wanted to know if she should bring spare parts with her just in case? Was Tom and Ray’s advice right or wrong?!
Call 8: Steve, Durham, NC
1951 Buick Roadmaster
Steve bought it with big hopes to restore, but now fears he??s bitten off more than he can chew!
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RechargeIT.org: Google’s plug-in hybrid initiative

February 22, 2009 at 1:19 pm

(Source:  Google.org)

RechargeIT is a Google.org initiative that aims to reduce CO2 emissions, cut oil use, and stabilize the electrical grid by accelerating the adoption of plug-in electric vehicles. We have a demonstration fleet of plug-ins at our headquarters in Mountain View, and we’re collecting and posting data on plug-in performance, investing in innovative technologies, and advocating for the passage of important legislation. Our vision is that one day thousands of cars will be plugging into a greener grid.

We’ve had our RechargeIT plug-ins on the road for about a year now, collecting data when driven by Google employees in our free car-share program. But we wanted to see how they would perform in a controlled test. The results of our seven-week driving experiment are in – and the plug-ins did great, getting as much as 93 MPG average across all trips, and 115 MPG for city trips! See the full results to explore detailed data from the experiment. (And check back often as we’ll be posting even more comprehensive data from our test over the next few weeks.)

RechargeIT Driving Experiment


Electricity usage for plug-in vehicles: 
Ford Escape Plug-In 133.2 Wh/mi, Toyota Prius Plug-in 139.6 Wh/mi
    See full results »    

Click here to explore this on-going Google Initiative.

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Reality Check on Plug-In Hybrids

February 22, 2009 at 1:13 pm

(Source:  Seattle Times)

Remember last spring, when Seattle’s mayor rolled out the city’s first car that could be “filled at the plug instead of the pump?”

It’s called a plug-in hybrid. They are all the green rage — “possibly the most sought-after technological innovation since Captain Kirk first flipped open his communicator,” says The New York Times.

You may have seen the city’s cars around town, painted with an eye-catching claim on the rear bumper: “This plug-in hybrid gets 100+mpg.”

Also, a greener boast: “150+City MPG!”

Not exactly, it turns out. Not even close.

Try 51 miles per gallon, city and highway combined. Not counting the cost of the electricity.

It’s what 14 plug-in Priuses averaged after driving a total of 17,636 miles. The pilot project is one of the few in the nation to subject plug-in hybrid cars to regular motor-pool duty, as opposed to being driven by hypermilers or alt-energy enthusiasts.

Click here to read the entire article.

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Ford’s new Fusion hybrid stuns the automotive press, topping even the popular Toyota Prius.

February 22, 2009 at 11:55 am

(Source: Yahoo Autos)

If you’re in the market for an ultra fuel-efficienthybrid that makes a convincing family sedan, your best choice has always been a Toyota — until now. Toyota’s Camry Hybrid and Prius have been the only realistic alternatives for many. Most American-built hybrids simply haven’t matched their fuel economy, and the Nissan Altima Hybrid remains rare and hard to find.

A new entrant in the contest, however, may have knocked the Toyotas from their lofty perch.

The automotive press has begun testing the all-new 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid in recent weeks. Two prominent publications have now published comparisons pitting the Fusion Hybrid against its Toyota competition, and the Ford has won both.

Click here to read the entire article.

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GPS-Monitored Vehicle Fees: Change You Can’t Believe In

February 22, 2009 at 12:07 am

(Source: InsideGNSS.com)

One change that apparently won’t happen under the Obama administration is replacing the federal gasoline tax with a GPS-monitored mileage fee.

In an interview with the Associated Press last week, U.S. Department of Transportation (DoT) Secretary Ray LaHood had suggested that his agency should look at a “vehicular miles program where people are actually clocked on the number of miles that they traveled.”

 

It was one of the shortest flights of a trial balloon so far this year.

When asked at his February 20 news briefing about the mileage fee concept and whether President Obama had “weighed in” on the subject, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said, “I don’t believe the President has. I can weigh in on it and say that it is not and will not be the policy of the Obama administration.”

Click here to read the entire article.

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Saab Officially Files For Bankruptcy Protection

February 21, 2009 at 4:15 pm

(Source:  NYT via Jalopnik.com)

Saab, GM’s meatball-of-a-badge, officially filed for bankruptcy protection today in Sweden. Remaining to be seen is what role, if any, GM will have with the born-from-jets brand.  

Here’s what the NYT has to say:

Unmoored from its parent, Saab went to a Swedish court for protection from its creditors, and said the company would – with assistance from the Swedish government – reorganize to pave the way for private investors to buy all or part of the company.

“We explored and will continue to explore all available options for funding and/or selling Saab, and it was determined a formal reorganization would be the best way to create a truly independent entity that is ready for investment,” the managing director of Saab, Jan-Ake Jonsson, said in a statement.

Click here to read the full article.
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