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Electric car supporters are rising to defend General Motors’ development of the Chevy Volt after the Obama Administration’s automotive task force proclaimed that the car was probably too expensive to be commercially successful in the near future.
G.M. is hoping to launch the Volt in late 2010 with a price tag of about $40,000.
“While the Volt holds promise, it is currently projected to be … Details
Although the environmental benefits of hybrid vehicles are well known, their near silent operation when running off batteries does pose a danger to pedestrians who are used to the rumble of an engine to alert them to oncoming vehicles. Active Noise Control technologies from Lotus Engineering address this problem by projecting engine sounds externally to improve pedestrian safety, while also employing noise-canceling technology internally to reduce unwanted cabin noise.
Making use of the same technology employed in noise canceling headphones, Lotus’ Road Noise Cancellation (RNC) and Engine Order Cancellation (EOC) systems reduce noise levels… Details
The on-track rivalry between the Ferrari and McLaren Formula 1 teams has been one of the most intense and hard fought in the history of grand prix racing. Now McLaren wants to take that battle to the streets. If surprise plans announced by McLaren Group chairman Ron Dennis today come to fruition, within five years McLaren Automotive, the division of the Group that currently builds the Mercedes-McLaren SLR, will be a stand alone company building up to 4000 high-performance sports car a year.
Centerpiece of the plan is an all-new mid-engine McLaren sports car codenamed P11. Dennis gave no detail about the car, but it is a Ferrari F430-sized coupe. The P11’s design is the work of talented American Frank Stephenson, whose credits include the new Mini and the new Fiat 500, and stints at Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa Romeo. It’s a handsome, relatively conventional looking coupe that …Â Details & Pictures
Reports surfaced earlier on Thursday that General Motors was considering axing its GMC and Pontiac brands, but a top GM exec says that is not the case. GM has already announced that it will be selling or winding down three of its brands by 2012 – Hummer, Saab and Saturn – but says it will focus on its four core brands, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC, moving forward.
Mark LaNeve, GM’s head of sales and marketing, called the earlier reports of the demise of GMC and Pontiac “unfounded, unsubstantiated and untrue.†LaNeve says  … Details