Could this be the coolest Hybrid ever?

Now sure Willie Nelson has his Bio Diesel Hot Rod Willy's truck, but this Saab 9-3 convertible could be the coolest Hybrid to come out of anywhere. 200 hp Turbo engine sipping Ethanol blend fuel ( or even E100) combined with Electric Hybrid technology ensuring a certain level of "green-ness" and you can drop the top as well. So you can have your cake and eat it too. Now it doesn't hurt that the Saab is already a great looking ragtop, that can seat 4 adults and has great handling, but add the smugness you can feel about doing your part for the environment. All the Hollywood types would love to buy theirs with the graphics on the side.

Now I wonder if this technology will be shared with GM platformmates from Opel, Pontiac and Chevrolet? The Pontiac G6 convertible is a nice looking car, a 200 hp Hybrid version would be sweet. And read the article, because there are no issues with clouding or geling of the Ethanol.

New link on sidebar, Green Car Congress

I bumpted into this site the other day, and finally decided to add it to my links here. Green Car Congress is a site devoted to discussing sustainable energy solutions for transportation. I'm not much of a "tree hugger" myself, but find the site very interesting. I know that sounds contradictory, I'm not a "tree hugger" yet I blog about Alternative Fuels, but that's how wide the acceptance of and insistance for these technologies has become. It's no longer just an issue for the Siera Club, the situation has become such that Auto Enthusiasts such as myself are jumping on the bandwagon with Environmentalist, Health Concerns (such as the American Lung Association of the Mid West) and even Conservatives are all seeing the light.

And the Green Car Congress seems to be a great resource for information.

Could new government regulations on fuel economy drive domestics toward further development of Alternative technologies?

The BusinessWeek article anounces new tougher fuel economy standards that may include full size trucks and SUVs, requiring CAFE ratings of 24mpg, up slightly from 22.4 mpg. Now the domestic auto manufacturers have been lobbying against this and trying to stall the regs. There;s not much new there, they've traditionally resisted Government regulations ( like in the above cartoon) and later used the technologies as selling points.

Ford Motor Company's "Driving American Innovation" and GM's "Drive Yellow, Live Green" campains both push each company's "Green" ambitions. But these tougher regulations are achievable goals with some of the technologies that are so close on the horizon.

Ford has their Gen 1 (Escape/Mariner/Tribute) Hybrids on the market and Gen 2 (Fusion/Milan/Edge) & 3 (500/FreeStyle/Montego) are coming within 3 years. Ford has also been working on their Hydraulic Launch Assist system for full size trucks and SUVs as well as Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engines and more fuel efficient Diesels. GM has been selling full size pickup Hybrids and now is releasing versions of their mini SUVs ( Vue/Equinox/Torrent) and their Saab divison is working on their Bio Fuel Saab 9-3. Chrysler has the potential with their Common Rail Diesels for the Liberty and possibly the new Caliber, and their parent company Mercedes new BlueTech Diesels which of course could trickle down into Chrysler vehciles in the US.

Toyota and Honda Hybrids are selling well, and Subaru is working on both a Hybrid and a Diesel programs. Mazda's Hydrogen project and Direct Fuel Injection are both promissing. VW's new Bluemotion including TwinChargers. It's an interesting time to be an auto enthusiasts. So hopefully any pressure on the industry will be the push they need to bring some of the technologies to market quicker.

VW Bluemotion at AutoBlog

Here's an interesting piece over at AutoBlog on VW's new Bluemotion program. It's just for part of Europe for now, but could it come to the US eventually like Mercedes' BlueTech? It's a combination of technologies including VW's new TwinCharger system ( GreenCarCongress article here ) , CNG (compressed natural gas) and new emission controls for Diesels.

The end result will be engines that burn cleaner, get better fule economy and are as powerful as the ones they replace. See the GCC article for a comparison chart. It's a promissing mix of technologies and we can hope that some of it reaches the US market. A TwinCharger GTI would be nice, 200 hp and 40 mpg anyone?

Will the Japanese manufacturers jump on the Diesel train? Can they?

There's a lot of hope for new Diesel passenger cars in the US. I've mentioned that Ford, GM and Chrysler have the ability to bring Diesels to market if they get off their asses. But what about the Japanese? I recall that in the 80's some of them offered Diesels in the US. I know that Mitsubishi, Toyota, Isuzu and Nissan had some. But I don't recall ever seeing a Honda or Subaru with a Diesel. In Europe Diesels are an important part of the market, and it's an area where the Japanese are underrepressented.

Now word is that Subaru is working on a new Boxer Diesel, and Nissan can always rely on partner Renault. Mitsubishi and Isuzu are becoming irrelivant in the US market, but Mitsu could come back from the brink. Mazda can rely on partner Ford for they're safe if Diesels make a come back. Toyota won't be left out of any part of the market. But again I have questions about Honda, did they ever offer a Diesel? Where would they source a powerplant in a pinch?

I'm interested in seeing how the Japanese respond to any shift in the US. Is this an area that "Domestic" manufacturers could have the upper hand?

Alternative Fuel legislation article at AutoBlog

If it takes one to get the other, well so be it. Legislation has been introduced to help jumpstart Alternative Fuel Technology in the US. Read the article at AutoBlog for the whole story.

I've stated before that I support legislation that would give incentives for the production, distribution and use of Bio Fuels. I know many people get nervous when Congress gets involved in many issues. The fear being that they'll do more harm than good, and line their pockets in the process. We can hope that Congress doesn't hurt the cause with this, and that this legislation will have a possative impact on the situation.

I know that if Bio Diesel was available near me, I'd seriously consider buying a Diesel vehicle and using the cleaner fuel. I know that a tax credit wouldn't hurt either.

Hydrogen powered Mazda RX8

Mazda delivered Hydrogen powered RX8's recently to fleet customers, beating BMW to the punch with their upcoming 7 series Hydrogen units. Hyrdrogen Internal Combustion Engines aren't really that much of a break through, they've been around a few years. And their sale to Fleet customers is a great way to keep Hydrogen in the spotlight, but there is not enough develpoment on production and distribution of the fuel at thsi point.

So while I like the idea that someone is getting to drive this great car, I'm left with more questions. Why an RX8? Why not a more usefull vehicle like a Mazda 3 or 6? And what good are the vehicles without the fuel?

Every move towards eliminating our dependance on foreign oil and cleaning our environment is worth mentioning, but it's difficult for me to get too excited at this point.

AutoBLog discuss 5 Euro Diesels that outdo the Prius Hybrid in economy

Interesting article over at AutoBlog, points to 5 European Diesel models that beat the Toyota Prius for fuel economy. Click the link to read. I'm not familiar with many of these models.

Jeep Liberty CRD! DCX has the jump on domestics

Of the "big 3- domestic" auto makers, only Chrysler's Jeep division currently offers a Diesel passenger model in the US. Even GM's Saab doesn't offer a Diesel here. All offer Diesels in Europe and Ford and GM offer Diesels elsewhere also. Diesels are recognized for several favorable attributes, among them is fuel economy. Typical passenger Diesel models get 15-20% better fuel economy than their petrol/gas counterparts. Now in the past Diesels were known as pigs, slow and dirty, but things have really changed in recent years. Diesel powerplant improvement combined with low sulphur fuel have reduced emissions, and improved power across the board from the smallest to the largest.

Right now, the only "domestic" passenger vehicle that I know of that is available with a Diesel is the Jeep Liberty with the 2.8 CRD (Common Rail Diesel) 4 cyl. I'm not sure if it passes California Emissions standards, but it is offered for sale in most of the US. So it would seem that Chrysler would be best prepared in the event of a consumer shift toward Diesel, especially considering their relationship with Mercedes ( Mercedes owns Chrysler) and that company's new Bluetech Diesel powerplants, that can already pass California's strictest emissions standards.

But Ford and GM, actually have European designed Diesels ranging from 1.4 to 4.7 liters that could be federalized and made to meet California's standards. Add to this the hope for increased Bio-Diesel and it seems like a win-win situation for most of the country. In colder regions, Diesel fuel is known to gel at low temperatures ( around 32-33 degrees) but Bio-Diesel gels at a higher temperature (closer to 40 degrees) so unless you garage your vehicle and use addatives this could be problematic in winter. But Bio-Diesel would aleviate many other problems we face in the US, such as air polution and dependance on foreign oil, so I'd like to see it given a chance.

This would be one area where the "Big 3" could have the jump on the Japanese, Korean and Chinese manufacturers, since Diesels are not a significant part of their product mix.

VW to go all Flex Fuel in Brazil, will we see any of this here in the US?

VW's Brazilian product mix is going all Flex Fuel. Now I wonder if they'll make the change for the US market? With a potential shift toward E85 and BioDiesel here in the US, it could be worth the expense for VW. And recently I discovered that each vehicle that is Flex Fuel capable is counted as achieving 75 mpg for the CAFE or Corporate Average Fuel Economy ratings.

So if the new GTI were E85 capable, the consumer and the company could have their cake and eat it too.

Getting started on new Blog

I've been blogging for 11 months over at MyFordDreams www.myforddreams.blogspot.com and have been posting quite a bit about Alternative Fuels and Technologies. So now I've decided to spin those posts off onto a new blog. I've always tried to concentrate on FoMoCo's efforts. But here, I want to discuss the broader issue and other companies efforts. Things will start slowly and a great deal of what I'm doing will be linking to other sites and adding my 2 cents here.