Batteries are keeping the next generation of ultra-efficient green cars out of your driveway. The Chevy Volt, the Cadillac Converj, an electric Ford Focus and half a dozen other electric cars are supposedly coming by 2010, or 2011. But they aren't here yet and no one can put a final date on when they will come because of batteries. The Holy Grail of green car engineering is a battery that …
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If Chrysler had worked this hard all along, they wouldn't be where they are today. The company, dependent on federal loans for its slim hope of staying alive another six months, used the Detroit Auto Show yesterday to unveil a stunning midsize electric sedan, the 200C. Jalopnik calls it "shockingly attractive," and comments, "Of all the Chrysler products revealed at the show, this is the most likely to reach production." …
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American automakers, alive only with federal assistance and in need of massive restructuring to survive 2009, may soon face competition on their home turf. Chinese automaker BYD, displaying its wares now at the Detroit Auto Show, says it plans to move into the U.S. market by 2011. Kicking Tires reports that the company "says it will launch models…in Europe in 2010, and that it plans to enter the U.S. market …
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Finally, the U.S. auto industry can claim to be number one at something. Unfortunately, that number one position is as the industry hardest hit by the economic downturn. Reuters reports that a study by bankruptcy and restructuring professionals released Monday shows the auto industry leads housing and retail as the most distressed industry in the U.S.. "As the nation has slid into recession, auto and auto parts makers have been …
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GMAC, the major financing arm of General Motors, was recently approved as a bank holding company, giving it access to government funds. The government has wasted no time in getting the cash flowing. The U.K.'s Guardian reports, "Last night the Bush administration announced it was pumping $5bn into GM's finance arm GMAC and lending a further $1bn to GM to help it buy shares in GMAC, which is considered key …
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