Archive for March 27th, 2010

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Manufacturing/Plants, India

The NXR – Reva’s low-cost, 65 mile-per-hour electric car (9,995 euros for the lead acid version with leased batteries) – was supposed to be available soon. The official Reva website still sends out that message, with the words, “Production of the REVA NXR is scheduled to commence early 2010,” but we have a hint that this will not happen. Somebody posted on the G-Wiz owner’s club forum an email purportedly from Reva:

I am writing to inform you that the start of production of the REVA NXR will be delayed by a few months to early 2011. As a result of this delay we have decided to refund customer deposits for this model.
Your bank account / credit card (as appropriate) will be credited with the sum of 500 euro within 30 days under the name of Reva Electric Car Company. Kindly contact your respective bank for the same. If for any reason you do not receive this credit you may write to our Customer Care department at exports@reva-ev.com.
We will contact you by email to confirm the new date for the start of production as soon as it is confirmed.
If you have any queries please feel free to contact us at any point in time.

We’ve asked Reva for a comment, and will let you know when we hear something official. At the very least, we want to know how “a few months” after the end of early 2010 becomes early 2011. Thanks to Jeff T. for the tip!

[Source: Reva Car Club]

Reva delaying production of NXR electric car? originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 17:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Via Autoblog Green

BMW’s own research shows that 80 percent of customers who buy the 1 Series think their new car is front-wheel-drive. The automaker’s chief executive officer, Norbert Reithofer, revealed this in an analysts’ conference call. Presumably, Reithofer was speaking about all customers around the globe, not just the Americans that embraced the brand as a yuppie-mobile in the ’80s.

Reithofer’s statement is self-serving, of course, coming shortly after reports that BMW would soon build a small front-wheel drive car despite the company previously making it clear that rear-wheel-drive was part of the brand’s DNA, with front-wheel-drive reserved for its Mini brand.

With those oft-cited draconian European CO2 and U.S. Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards on the way, we’ll soon see a raft of sub-1 Series BMWs and of sub-C-Class Mercedes-Benzes, most or all with FWD. The Toyota FT-86 and its unnamed Subaru sibling notwithstanding, FWD is the way to go for interior space packaging and cost, especially if you can share the sub-1 Series platform with the next-generation Mini. Or, in the case of Mercedes, update and expand the A- and B-Class platform.

It has become painfully clear since General Motors, Ford Motor Company and Chrysler shifted most of its mainstream models to FWD from the 1980s and early ’90s that maintaining a fleet of both FWD and RWD is costly and difficult. Getting rid of unibody RWD wholesale by the ’90s, so that the automakers would have to re-start from scratch is one of the bigger mistakes Detroit has made in recent decades. Ford has wiped out its RWD unibody models, save for the live-rear-axle Mustang. Chrysler went back to RWD for its big Chrysler and Dodges only with the help of Daimler, so you can’t say that “merger of equals” was entirely fruitless. And GM has struggled to return to rear-drive large cars since the early ’00s.

In our story on GM’s new Alpha platform, which supplies RWD to the future Chevy Camaro, Cadillac ATS and CTS, and perhaps one or two more cars, I report that the taxpayer-owned automaker needs to decide whether to develop a new eight-speed automatic for FWD or RWD.

I know what many of you will say: why not both? The answer is that doing both would just about double its cost. It could be the difference between spending $1 billion on FWD only and $2 billion — yes, that’s with a “b” — on FWD and RWD. And while you’d think the logical solution would be eight speeds for the more prestigious rear-drive cars, the plain economic fact is that the new tranny would pay for itself much more quickly if adapted for the higher-volume FWD models.

While you and I do care about which wheels motivate the car, the fact is, most buyers, the ones who create the volume at GM, Ford, Toyota, Honda et. al. — and even BMW, apparently — don’t, unless they live in a snowy state. In this case, most would prefer to have front-drive to buying a second set of tires. Lineups consisting purely of FWD-based cars and crossovers would be by far the most cost-effective strategy for any full-line automaker.

RWD is more dynamically pleasing, at least on mid-size to large cars and sports cars. There are plenty of fun FWD cars out there, such as the Volkswagen GTI, the original Honda CRX, and the Mini, both old and new. But RWD has an aesthetic advantage, too, particularly on larger cars, making for a better proportioned dash-to-axle relationship. Of course, Audi has solved that problem with its unique engine-transmission layout. Try explaining a new A4 quattro to that 80 percent of BMW 1 Series owners.

I’ve tried to make the case for RWD for large cars. I’ve often cited the Mercedes-Benz E250 Bluetec, an E-Class with a 2.2-liter turbodiesel four projected to get a combined 32 mpg. That’s just 3.5-mpg shy of the 2016 CAFE standard, easily offset by fleets of A- and B-Classes. Hyundai has managed to add two rear-drive cars to its North American lineup, with a third, the Equus, on the way, plus one in the works for Kia. John Krafcik says the RWD cars will be of such low-volume that they won’t hurt Hyundai in its goal to be the most fuel-efficient brand in the U.S. But that really points to Hyundai’s success and its ability to spend big money on low-volume cars, compared with GM and Ford, these days.

If you consider Ford’s newfound success with its mostly FWD and FWD-based all-wheel-drive lineup of unibodies, it’s rather amazing that GM has a RWD strategy at all. Considering the success of the new FWD/AWD Cadillac SRX, which replaced a RWD-based model, and that its new large XTS sedan also has a transverse-mounted engine, it’s almost a surprise that the new, leaner company didn’t simply pull the plug on its Sigma and Zeta platforms. Cadillac asserts that its “flagship” is RWD, by the way, because it’s the Escalade. But that huge SUV won’t make Cadillac Standard of the World again.

Replacing Sigma and Zeta with a highly flexible Alpha RWD platform is a smart, BMW-like move that comes just as BMW backs into FWD platforms. Let’s hope that unlike, say, the Kappa RWD sports car platform, Alpha is a platform that GM can efficiently update, so that Chevy, Buick and Cadillac can use it for decades to come. If not, we’ll always have Hyundai.

Via MotorTrend Magazine Blogs

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Motorcycle

Picture this: It’s ten minutes after five o’clock, you’re heading north on the 405 freeway, leaving Los Angeles. You won’t appreciate your favorite two-wheeled conveyance much more than at this moment. If you spend time traveling through California, you know the practice of lane-splitting can shave hours off of an otherwise grueling commute. The act of passing slowed or stopped cars between lanes, however, appeared to be limited to to the Golden State, with slim hopes of spreading east. Until now, that is.

Under House Bill 2475, Arizona lawmakers would allow lane-splitting during aone-year “trial period.”. This would only encompass Maricopa County, home to the Phoenix metro area and its surrounding suburbs.

Local news reports indicate differing opinions over the plan’s safety. That said, riders who lane-split in California (not to mention the millions who regularly do so every single day in Europe and Asia) will tell you the practice can indeed be performed safely. What’s more, lane-splitting reduces fuel consumption, travel times and roadway congestion.

As traffic grows more intense each year, it’s hard to view attempts to reduce congestion as anything but positive. If Arizonans need another excuse to enjoy their year-round riding conditions, it could soon come with the passing of Bill 2475.

[Source: ABC15.com | Image: akeg via CC-SA 2.0]

Two wheels to the front: Arizona to legalize lane splitting. Maybe. originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 10:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Via Autoblog

Filed under: Spy Photos, Sedan, Chevrolet

We’ve seen patent drawings of the Chevrolet Malibu, and now spy shooters have captured the real thing cruising the hinterlands like a Yeti. Additional styling elements will be added to the bodywork, giving the current car’s graceful bulk a few more angles and a bit more finesse.

The prototype’s better-looking than the patent sketches indicate, which is no surprise, but we’re still looking forward to how those front and rear lights will evolve. At least in back, it looks like they won’t be true dual units, as envisioned on a couple of sketch-based renderings, but will have single lenses outboard and another set on the trunk.

Inside, which is where we think the Malibu can really step up its game, “vastly improved” materials are said to be on the way. A significantly better ride will come courtesy of the HiPer strut system on the car’s new Epsilon II platform.

[Source: Car & Driver]

Spy Shots: 2012 Chevrolet Malibu prepares to shake up mid-size segment originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 12:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Via Autoblog

Filed under: Etc., Ford, Lexus, Porsche

Kelley Blue Book has compiled and collated the data from its year-long Brand Watch Study, which, based on “consumer perception data, [shows] which brands best communicated certain features of their vehicles.” Of the nine categories tabbed, Porsche took three: best performance brand, best exterior design in the luxury segment, and coolest brand. Double victories went to Ford for most rugged truck brand and most family-friendly brand, and Lexus for best comfort and best interior design.

This list makes a lot more sense on the face of it than AAA’s commuter picks released a couple of days ago, and Porsche makes excellent cases for winning all three categories – the 918 Spyder concept alone might be good enough to garner two of them. We do get a chuckle, though, from the KBB description of Porsche’s most recent offering: “The new four-door Panamera only adds to the mystique.” Indeed.

Shout-outs to all the winners, including Chevy for best exterior design in the non-luxury segment and Mercedes-Benz for three-peating as best prestige brand. You’ll find KBB’s full presser with methodology and reasoning after the jump.

[Source: KBB]

Continue reading Porsche a big winner in KBB’s Brand Awards

Porsche a big winner in KBB’s Brand Awards originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Via Autoblog