Recent Comments:
Insignia will come to U.S. as a Saturn, with new sheetmetal, interior {Autoblog}
Jul 24th 2008 2:35PM Eric&&TA
Good point. I had forgotten about the Honda Accord having been Americanized.
Generally speaking, though, I think most car companies tend to sell the same automobile (only slightly altered) in every market. That isn't to say that every car is in every market (much as you pointed out with Toyota), just that when they do bring a car to the N.A. market, it tends to be the same car (in most respects) to what they sell elsewhere. There may be some minor changes and different engine choices, but on the surface, at least, one would be pretty hard pressed to tell the difference at a glance. The US automakers are the major exception to this rule (though not the only exceptions as you pointed out).
Your point re: VW is taken, and I think I was being fairly silly when I suggested that the cause of the American carmakers difficulties is that they provide different vehicles here than abroad. It makes a certain amount of sense just like Japanese car manufacturers make Japan-only models. Still, and here I think we are in total agreement, I think it makes no sense to take a car that is already slated to come state-side and then change it radically simply because there is a belief that Americans won't buy what Europeans buy. Then again, I'm just some guy typing on a laptop, and there are a lot of people a lot smarter and better paid than I making these decisions. There may be a point to it that I don't understand.
On the other hand I look at Ford or GM, then I look at our Focus or Aveo or Cobalt (buy only briefly so that my eyes don't melt), and then I look at Fords and Opels abroad and I have to wonder at least a little if their current financial straits weren't just a little caused by the not-invented-here syndrom that almost sunk them in the 70's and 80's.
Insignia will come to U.S. as a Saturn, with new sheetmetal, interior {Autoblog}
Jul 24th 2008 3:23AM You simply cannot sell one car that is more or less the same worldwide. Simply. Cannot. Be. Done. This is why Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen etc. are all just about bankrupt and Ford and GM are doing so well.
All kidding aside, I have to wonder what exactly is being talked about here. Additional cup holders and slightly different bumpers? Ok, kinda makes sense though it seems stupid not to design all that in in the first place (and by stupid I mean domestic auto company level of stupid... the "Who could have predicted high gas prices?" kind of stupid).
If they are talking about significant visible changes in styling and materials then I have to admit to being at a total loss. I haven't driven the Opel that the Aura was based on... but I would be surprised if the interior materials were as cheap as the stuff in the Aura. What a let down compared to an Accord.
I have to echo the sentiments of so many here that I will be disappointed if GM mangles this car the way they seem to do with so many other potentially great cars they have overseas.
I also have to say that the Astra could have been a real hit here. The issues that afflict it are not any lack of cup-holders. What's missing is a decent ad campaign (nobody has hardly even heard of it), a decent brand identity for Saturn (Saturn sells plastic cars that look weird, right?), a price that compares well with its competition (they are priced as though they were VW's, which they simply cannot compete with - even in Europe), and a competitive engine for the money being spent. If they had branded it as a Chevy and sold it at a more reasonable price, it could have been a real hit. So say I :)
Lightning GT EV sports car coming this month {Autoblog}
Jul 9th 2008 4:00PM This is a beautiful looking car. Simply stunning. If I had the cash I'd be interested in something that was like what this is claimed to be.
Alas, a quick perusal of their website leads me to be somewhat skeptical. They claim to have several gasoline versions running, but not one single photo of a real car (maybe they are all test mules). If they claim to have a production ready version to sell next year, I'd have hoped that there would be at least one physical prototype that they could have trotted out.
Still, one seriously attractive car and I would be happy to eat crow if they can pull it off.
GM shrinks Volt's gas tank, range drops from 600 to 360 miles {Autoblog}
Jul 8th 2008 8:02PM I'm not sure reducing the range and the newer, higher, cost will make this product DOA. That seems like a fairly extreme reaction to what are not really all that surprising changes in the program. The higher cost will, no doubt, severely curtail sales. I don't think it will sink the product entirely. The reduced range, I think, won't have much of an effect at all. Who even knew that the volt was originally promised to have a 600 mile range? Maybe a few gearheads but not the general public. I sure didn't. And how many people have cars today that get much more than 300 to 350 miles on a single tank? Not many I'd wager.
No, after price, the biggest and most important factor to people will be the gas mileage. If it actually gets the high mileage they are predicting, then it will sell to anyone who covets high environmental credibility and to anyone who does enough commuting to make gas a significant percentage of their automobile cost of ownership. Actual range (as long as it is reasonable) will be a non-issue.
Ultimately, the Volt is a proof of concept. The first versions will hopefully manage to meet some of the stated goals, but the real payoff will be in the learning curve that GM will have traversed in getting it to market. Hopefully that knowledge will be put to use to produce better and cheaper and even more efficient cars in the future. I have been a GM hater in the past (and still can't bring myself to actually consider purchasing 95% of their products), but I do believe that they have religion on this one. They can see the writing on the wall and they know that some serious changes are needed if they are to remain in business. Whether they succeed or not, is anybody's guess. I, for one, hope that they do.
Tyca reveals lamps that could absorb CO2 in parking lots {Autoblog Green}
May 23rd 2008 5:08AM RE: Terry
You are correct that cars emit CO. Basically, CO is produced in incomplete combustion. I think it usually happens when there is not enough oxygen during the combustion process. Ideally, a perfectly tuned (and mythical) engine would not produce any CO, but only CO2. In real life, cars emit CO as well as CO2. I do not know whether plants can photosynthesize CO, but I doubt it.
Now comes the part that really tests my old college chemistry... CO is not a naturally stable molecule I think. This means that it will want to oxidize with free oxygen atoms it comes across to form CO2. This is why CO is actually a fuel and will burn under the right conditions. When it does burn, it produces CO2. Even without burning, if left in the atmosphere long enough, it will eventually oxidize into CO2.
So, in short, as far as I know these lamps will not "consume" the CO produced by our cars, but could "consume" the CO2 that this CO eventually becomes.
That said, I agree with Nate regarding the pointlessness of these lights as far as calling them CO2 absorbing. If you really want to absorb some CO2, plant a tree. On the other hand, I think the idea is absolutely brilliant from a strictly coolness factor. I love them.
Tyca reveals lamps that could absorb CO2 in parking lots {Autoblog Green}
May 23rd 2008 4:48AM RE: Pente
Sorry for the delay in getting back...
I think you are correct. Carbon sequestration, as I understand it, involves taking the solid form of carbon (either by itself as C or as part of a larger molecule such as Sugar) and burying it.
Tyca reveals lamps that could absorb CO2 in parking lots {Autoblog Green}
May 22nd 2008 1:49PM RE: Pente
Photosynthesis does not convert CO2 into oxygen. It actually takes six water molecules (6 x H2O) and six carbon dioxide molecules (6 x CO2) and creates a sugar molecule (C6H12O6) and six oxygen molecules (6 x O).
The Carbon (in the form of sugar) remains in the plant as part of the plant's structure.
Tyca reveals lamps that could absorb CO2 in parking lots {Autoblog Green}
May 22nd 2008 1:43PM hang on a second...
As Michael mentions, the CO2 does not just magically go away. It becomes the "structure" of the algae (well, the C part of CO2 does anyway). It is basically turned into living matter.
Alas, living matter eventually becomes dead matter (and in the case of algae, quite quickly) and then rots. As it rots, it releases the C back into the atmosphere. Carbon sequestration in the form of algae is not really a solution.
Michael correctly suggests that the algae be sequestered underground so that the Carbon that is captured, stays captured. Unfortunately, these lights are not set up for that. They shouldn't appreciably increase Carbon output (other than manufacture and delivery), but they will not reduce it.
On a larger scale, however, something like what Michael suggests could be feasible. Instead of little bitty lights randomly strewn about, large fields of algae could be grown and then sequestered. That said, the amount of energy involved in doing that, coupled with the minimal amount of carbon that would be captured, would make this (most likely) a complete waste of time.
Tweaked 2009 Ford Focus Coupe debuts {Autoblog}
May 13th 2008 2:05PM exactly! I keep thinking Tempo every time I look at this thing (and I should know, we had two growing up)
Tweaked 2009 Ford Focus Coupe debuts {Autoblog}
May 13th 2008 3:43AM Actually, check out the following image. I put the US Focus ("sporty" model) against the Euro Focus ST. I scaled both images so that they both have the same size wheels, which I think is correct.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/86158153@N00/2488342905/sizes/o/
