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Everyone seems to be paying attention to what the CEOs of America's automakers are driving this morning. General Motors noticed this, and sensed an opportunity. GM CEO Rick Wagoner will reportedly arrive at Congressional hearings today in a 2010 Chevy Volt. Or rather, in the closest thing he could find.
According to Jalopnik, Wagoner will drive the Volt mule from his Washington hotel to "a 9:30 AM rally at the corner of Delaware Ave. and C street just outside the Russell Senate Building."
That's a distance of just a few miles, probably at speeds below 25 mph - so it still won't come close to showing us how close the Volt prototypes may be to finished products. The fact that Wagoner didn't drive one from Detroit, but apparently had it shipped to Washington in order to drive the last few miles, may be an indication that the Volt program has a long way to go to keep its promises.
GM CEO Drives a Chevy Volt to Washington...Sort Of - U.S. News Rankings and Reviews
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| | From the Associated Press:
POZNAN, Poland (AP) -- The first solar-powered car to travel around the world ended its journey at the U.N. climate talks Thursday, arriving with the message that clean technologies are available now to stop global warming.
More information can be found here.
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By Danny at 12/03/2008 - 3:50pm
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Looks like they have dropped some of the unique aspects of the car and now is going to look even more like the "Prius Jr"
Production:
Concept:
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By Danny at 12/03/2008 - 12:27pm
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Pretty interesting use of a hybrid platform mixed with a diesel engine to provide a 42% increase in fuel economy.
Fleetwood debuts concept hybrid RV at national show | Business | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California
Quote: By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL
The Press-Enterprise Even though one of Fleetwood's largest RVs is eight times the size of a Toyota Prius, the company aims to have its mobile homes do the same thing the compact hybrid car does.
Riverside-based Fleetwood Enterprises Inc. debuted a concept hybrid motor home at the annual National RV Trade Show in Louisville, Ky., on Tuesday, the same day RV-maker Winnebago introduced its own hybrid dubbed Adventurer.
Fleetwood has no plans to mass produce the hybrid yet. The vehicle's appearance at the annual trade show is to get feedback from dealers.
It looks the same from the outside, for the show, Fleetwood used a Terra LX coach, but inside it has a diesel engine in the front and a battery that measures 2-feet-wide and 5-feet-long, said Heather Everett, a Fleetwood spokeswoman.
Everett said the RV would operate much like a Toyota Prius, using just its battery power for city and slow driving. When the RV hits the freeway it would use both the battery and diesel engine, charging the battery at the same time, she said.
One of Fleetwood's typical Class A motor homes, the largest in size, needs one gallon of fuel to travel seven miles. The hybrid travels 12 miles per gallon, she said. The RV could travel 700 miles without refueling, and travel up to 77 miles per hour, the maximum that the tires can handle, she said.
Both companies' concepts used the same chassis from Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp., a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America LLC.
Everett wouldn't say how much it cost Fleetwood to buy the chassis at a wholesale price but said a hybrid RV would likely cost $40,000 to $45,000 extra.
"I would imagine price is more important than anything else," not necessarily if it's "green" or fuel-efficient, said Andy Coyle, owner of Canyon RV Center in Colton. Fuel costs generally don't deter RV owners who drive a few thousand miles annually and save by not renting hotel rooms or buying airfare, he said.
Fleetwood has struggled financially losing $56.7 million in its second quarter. In October, the New York Stock Exchange threatened to de-list the company if its stock doesn't rise above $1 and remain there for 30 consecutive days. The company is also attempting to convert $100 million in debt into $103 million worth of bonds before mid-December.
The credit crisis has made it harder for interested buyers to get loans to buy pricey new motor homes.
In 2006, the industry sold the most RVs it had ever sold in 30 years of annual data, said Kevin Broom, spokesman for the RV Industry Association. In 2007, that number dropped 9.5 percent to 353,400. The association expects 250,000 new RVs to be sold this year, a 29 percent drop, he said.
Fleetwood's share price finished Tuesday at 26 cents, more than double its 12-cent close Monday.
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HONOLULU Hawaii has unveiled plans to be first in the nation to roll out electric car stations statewide a move the governor hailed as a major step toward weaning the islands off oil.
For the full story, click here.
It now seems that Hawaii is among the leaders in welcoming alternative technologies as they are also the first state to mandate solar hot waters in all new homes.
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By Dozzer at 12/03/2008 - 4:40am
| Chrysler, Ford and General Motors have all submitted their proposals to Congress for multi-billion dollar loans upon which their survival could depend.
The so-called Detroit Three of troubled US carmakers have asked for a combined total of $34bn (£22.8bn; 26.8bn euros).
Slashing costs, reducing levels of debt and investing in greener technologies form the centre-piece of each proposal. The chief executives of Ford and GM have even offered to work for $1 a year if Congress approves the emergency aid.
BBC NEWS | Business | US carmakers publish rescue plans | | |
| | Quote: Governor Lingle and Better Place Announce Partnership to Offer National Blueprint for Clean Energy in Transportation
Hawaiian Electric and Better Place Sign Agreement to Power Electric Vehicles with Renewable Energy
HONOLULU (Dec 02, 2008) -- Today, Governor Linda Lingle and Shai Agassi, Founder and CEO of Better Place unveiled a plan to bring an electric-car network to Hawai‘i, creating a model for the adoption of electric cars in the U.S. The move – only the second of its kind announced in the nation – will help fuel Hawai‘i’s drive to lead the nation in renewable energy use, create jobs locally, while also helping to secure our energy future.
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| | County converts hybrids to all-electric
"The conversion kits use lithium battery packs charged via standard 120-volt outlets. Under optimal conditions, the battery packs provide an all-electric equivalent range of approximately 30 miles."
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By Rybold at 12/02/2008 - 4:31am
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Although I could only find a news article saying that he is going to drive, while listening to the radio earlier today, a Ford spokesperson who was being interviewed said Ford CEO Alan Mulally said he is going to leave the corporate jet behind and drive a hybrid to get to Washington this time.
Bloomberg.com: Canada
Going on at the same time that the execs will be presenting their case to Congress, the Electric Drive Transportation Association will be holding an EV convention at the Washington D.C. Convention Center (Dec.2-5). An excerpt from the article says "More than 75 hybrid models will hit the market by 2011. President-elect Barack Obama has promised to put one million plug-in hybrids on the road by 2015, and he has made clear that Detroit will not get the federal help it wants without clear commitments to change the way they do business. That means swift transition to next-generation technology and a concrete commitment to better fuel economy." Hybrid/Electric Tech Companies Meet in DC as Top Officials Debate 'Detroit Three' Rescue Plans | | |
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