Video: GM shows us how the 2011 Chevrolet Volt works
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Chevrolet, GM, Green Daily
How the Chevy Volt works – Click above to watch the video after the break
Modern cars and trucks are nothing if not complicated pieces of machinery, and that’s doubly true of hybrid vehicles. You can bet that the 2011 Chevrolet Volt will set a new standard in high-tech gadgetry and computing tech on four wheels, so it’s not terribly surprising that General Motors has seen fit to release a video explaining how it works using easy-to-understand graphics and animation.
There isn’t anything contained herein that our regular readers don’t already know, but for the average person sifting through millions of YouTube videos looking for something interesting to gaze at, this clip could be very helpful. Plus, the next time somebody asks you what the deal is with the Chevy Volt, you can simply direct them to the video pasted after the break. Easy as pie!
[Source: General Motors via YouTube]
Continue reading Video: GM shows us how the 2011 Chevrolet Volt works
Video: GM shows us how the 2011 Chevrolet Volt works originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 02 Feb 2010 18:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Pedal Power: Toyota sales fall 16% in January
Filed under: Car Buying, Recalls, Toyota
We’ll have our By the Numbers report for January sales ready in about an hour, but in the meantime, we thought you’d like to know how Toyota sales fared considering, well… everything that’s going on. As you can see from the chart below, sales in January for both Toyota Motor Company and the Toyota brand itself were down versus January 2009 – 16 percent and nearly 19 percent, respectively (all percentages reflect the change in total volume and do not take into account that there were two less selling days in January 2010 versus January 2009). As you’ll also see later in our By the Numbers report, that’s in contrast to many of Toyota’s competitors that enjoyed an increase in sales last month.
We’ve also included sales performance numbers for each model affected by the latest sticking pedal recall (models affected by the floormat recall are not all included, although some models are involved in both recalls). Again, sales for every recalled model were down despite the recall having been announced relatively late in the month on January 21. Of particular note are models like the Corolla/Matrix (Toyota doesn’t separate out sales numbers for these two vehicles) and the Camry, the two biggest sellers involved in the recall. The Camry, the perennial best-selling car in the U.S., was actually beat last month by the Honda Accord, which saw its sales jump over 25 percent to 20,759 units in January 2010.
| January 2010 | January 2009 | Change (%) | December 2009 | Change (%) | |
| Toyota Motor Co | 98,796 | 117,287 | -15.76 | 187,860 | -47.41 |
| Toyota | 83,279 | 102,565 | -18.80 | 159,295 | -47.72 |
| RAV4 | 7,894 | 8,034 | -1.74 | 16,742 | -52.85 |
| Corolla/Matrix | 17,121 | 19,238 | -11.00 | 34,220 | -49.97 |
| Avalon | 944 | 2,119 | -55.45 | 2,574 | -63.33 |
| Camry | 15,792 | 20,782 | -24.01 | 34,946 | -54.81 |
| Highlander | 4,478 | 5,757 | -22.22 | 9,442 | -52.57 |
| Tundra | 3,904 | 7,076 | -44.83 | 8,870 | -55.99 |
| Sequoia | 644 | 1,592 | -59.55 | 1,760 | -63.41 |
Renault Wind Roadster – first official photos
British magazine published an official photos of Renault Wind Roadster – two-seat car based on the Renault Twingo. The debut of the machine should take place at the Geneva Motor Show in March this year.
Roadster Wind gets under the hood 1.2-liter four-cylinder engine with turbocharger and will compete in the market with a cabriolet Peugeot 207 CC, Nissan Micra CC and Mitsubishi CZC. Cost Renault Wind in the UK, according to the edition of between £ 17 thousand.
Mazda to launch special 20th Anniversary MX-5 Miata in Geneva
Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Japan, Mazda
Twenty years of motoring goodness – click above for high-res image
Twenty years. Can you believe it’s been two decades since we first heard the Japanese phrase Jinba ittai (meaning “rider and the horse are one”)? To catch you up, way back in 1976, some Mazda engineers asked American auto journalist Bob Hall what they should build next. Mr Hall, who later wound up working for Mazda, mentioned the bugs-in-the-teeth British roadsters that every gearhead both loved and loathed. Their reputation as great driver’s cars was only preceded by their rep for breaking down and stranding you on the side of the road.
If Mazda could engineer a tight, compact, great-handling roadster that didn’t dump all its fluids every other Wednesday, they’d surely have a hit. Back at the 1989 Chicago Auto Show, the world met the MX-5, much, much better known as the Miata. Since then, nearly 1,000,000 Miatas have been built, with just under 400,000 of them getting snatched up by American consumers. In other words, the Miata gambit worked.
To commemorate twenty years of building such great sports cars, Mazda will be introducing a 20th Anniversary Limited Edition MX-5 Miata at next month’s Geneva Motor Show. Pay special attention to the “Limited” part of the name, as only 2,000 anniversary cars will be built, and they’ll only be available in Europe. One reason for the latter might be that the 20th Anniversary cars are based on the smaller displacement 1.8-liter car, a version of the Miata not sold in the States, or it could be that we may get our own commemorative edition to be announced at a later date.
Like most anniversary packages (see the big four-oh Nissan Z), nothing too exciting is happening to this Miata. There is, of course, the requisite numbered plaque. There’s a chrome grille surround, chrome door-handles and chrome headlight surrounds. You also get “silver-look” fog light surrounds, plus special 17-inch wheels with “20th Anniversary” logos. The 20th Anniversary cars are available only in red, white or a new Aurora Blue, which we find rather sharp looking. And lest you think Mazda’s not tossing a bone to performance enthusiasts, the car comes with a strut-tower brace.
A few paces in the Insight hybrid
The Insight according to AutoWeek editors
I’m not the biggest fan of AutoWeek when it comes to unbiased reviews of hybrid cars. Nonetheless, I still like to read their their take on hybrids.
Today, AW has posted their ‘Driver’s Log’ on the Honda Insight hybrid. It’s a mix of good and bad. For anyone considering an Insight purchase, however, it’s a worthy read.
Read the article
2010 Hofele Porsche Cayenne 957 Ceyster GT 660
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Coloumb gets $14 million in latest venture capital funding round
Filed under: EV/Plug-in
Coulomb Technologies is up $14 million thanks to a recently completed Series B funding round. The money will help the plug-in vehicle charging unit company do two main things: expand and evolve. The funding round was led by two venture companies, Voyager Capital and Rho Ventures, each of which will now add a member to Coulomb’s board of directors.
The expansion includes making further deals in places in Asia and South America (its already working on deals in places like Amsterdam, Australia and San Jose, CA). The evolution would take place with the charging units that the company builds in the form of more research and development, according to a press release.
Coulomb recently unveiled a charging unit that looks like a gas pump and can provide Level 3 (i.e., fast) charging from dedicated 480-volt, 125-amp circuits. The company plans on making money not by selling energy but by selling access to energy. Read the details of their plan here.
[Source: Coulomb]
