November 2007 Archives

Clean diesel surpasses hybrids and E85
E85 is even worse than using straight gasoline

According to a cost-benefit analysis study, The Benefits and Costs of New Fuels and Engines for Cars and Light Trucks, by John Graham at the Frederick S. Pardee Rand Graduate School, diesel and even just regular gasoline, is better than E85.

The author looks from the consumer's perspective, taking into account technology cost, fuel savings, mobility, and performance and finds that advanced diesel technology offers the most value for the three types of vehicles examined (passenger cars, sport utility vehicles, and pickup trucks).

The study assumes fuel prices of $2.50 per gallon for gasoline, $2.59 per gallon for diesel fuel (state taxes vary), and $2.04 per gallon for E85 (including tax credit). In York, there is currently a 50 cent difference between the price of regular and diesel. The report also examines scenarios where fuel costs are much higher and much lower.

E85 does not generate net societal benefits unless a breakthrough reduces ethanol production costs or gas prices stay near their current high levels for a sustained period of time. And doesn't take into account Cellulosic ethanol (not corn based, if technology evolves) (from press release on study)

Advanced diesel technology has captured about 50% of the new light-duty market in Europe, but diesel offerings in the United States are currently limited to 2% of the light duty vehicle market.

This is about to change.

U.S. auto manufacturers and politicians have been in love with corn based ethanol. It is a profitable, marketable oozing Band-aid for the public relations nightmare of global warming and our national energy dependence on foreign oil.

The National Audubon Society and American Bird Conservancy stated Wednesday that about one-quarter of the more than 700 species that breed in the USA are threatened.

A variety of human activities threatens habitat loss. Energy development, introduction and invasion of foreign animals and disease, urban sprawl and global warming are the cited causes of declining numbers for 217 kinds of threatened and endangered birds.

It may not seem like a big deal to loose a few feathered friends at the bird feeder, but every link in the food chain has developed over a long period of evolution. A migratory bird gone here can mean an insect population out of check somewhere else; a piece of the grand puzzle missing.

Google said it would spend hundreds of millions of dollars, part of that to hire engineers and energy experts to investigate alternative energies like solar, geothermal and wind power to help stimulate the creation of renewable energy technologies that it believes can be cheaper than coal-generated power.

Google says its goal is to produce one gigawatt of renewable energy — enough to power the city of San Francisco — more cheaply than coal-generated electricity. The company predicted that this can be accomplished in “years, not decades.” nyt.com

Some Wall Street analysts balked fearing that Google had expanded out of their profit model.

“My first reaction when I read about this was, ‘Is this a joke?’” said Jordan Rohan of RBC Capital Markets. “I’ve written off Google’s competition as a threat to Google’s long-term market share gains. But I haven’t written off Google’s own ability to stretch too far and try to do too much. Ultimately, that is the biggest risk in the Google story.”

Perhaps if more companies took the risk: Not to keep making SUV's and not to keep reinvesting billions into pumping more oil and not to come up with ways to stretch the food supply by a taxpayer subsidized ethanol folly...all of which are or were very profitable for a moment.

Google is pushing money into research and development and risks not making a profit from the venture in the next quarter or even the next several years.

How totally refreshing.

Google's stock closed 1% higher Tuesday, perhaps America agrees.

ExxonMobil Corp said yesterday that a new technology developed by its chemicals business will help the automotive industry overcome some of the overheating hazards with the design of current Lithium ion batteries under heavy demand and help manufactures switch to lighter, more efficient batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles. Battery technology has been a roadblock to bringing a plug-in hybrid to market.

ExxonMobil Chemical and its Japanese affiliate Tonen Chemical said they have developed new separator film technologies that can stand up at higher heat levels. Separator films are thin membranes that keep the battery's positive and negative electrodes apart.

guardian.co.uk

Energy bill discussions this week remains flavored with politics. The distinction between cars and trucks continues providing a loophole for SUVs and a profit model that car makers feel works.

General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., Chrysler LLC and Toyota Motor Corp. all had backed a plan in the House to raise standards to 32-35 m.p.g. by 2022, while preserving the distinction between cars and trucks. freep.com

The compromise also extends credits for flexible-fuel vehicles, a key point for Detroit automakers that promotes corn based ethanol production.

Meanwhile in other news this week,

Some 40,000 walruses have appeared on the Russian Arctic coast, a phenomenon that scientists believe is a result of global warming melting Arctic sea ice...“Because of climate change, ice is disappearing from the Chukchi and East Siberian seas during the summer months,” says Viktor Nikiforov, Director of WWF-Russia’s Regional Programmes. sciencedaily.com

"Survivorship has dropped in the cubs, sub-adults and very old animals and is directly related to the date of (ice) break-up," Ian Stirling, a biologist with the Canadian Wildlife Service in Edmonton, Alberta, and an author on the report analyzing 20 years of population data of polar bears in Canada's Hudson Bay theregister.co.uk

It is ironic that we think that we can deal, buy time, and jockey to preserve profitability/lifestyle by status quo when the vessel that sustains life is literally melting.

The silent voice missing at these talks, our environment, is the one partner that holds all the cards.

Scott Merritt, a transplant from New York, brought his Prius to a Georgia state emissions inspection station and was failed several times because the engine shuts off. It seems the state emissions inspection system didn't account for technology that accounts for zero emissions (engine shut down) ajc.com

As technology expands state testing systems are bound to glitch.

I recall my 2000 Volkswagen TDI. This wasn't one of the new, clean diesels that use low sulfur diesel and must conform to levels equal to that of gasoline engines. The vehicle was excluded from testing because it was a diesel.

I traded in the car, that was somewhat annoying to back with the windows open because it smelled, for a hybrid Honda that was rated ULEV (Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle). It was required to have an inspection every year.

Until hurricane Agnus wiped out the Biesecker Mill water works in 1972, the mill was powered by free water power.

Over 230 years of renewable, tax free, profit and pollution free energy captured and harnessed in York County by a machine made out of wood, stone and iron.

Mills often used a retention system that stored water at night that was then used to power the water wheel the following day. These ancient water batteries captured the stream's continuous slow energy and conserved it for high demand.

I am always marveled by these early accomplishments of self-sufficiency that harnessed renewable energy. It reminds me that historically, "renewable energy" wasn't a future, high-tech technology that seems untouchable by consumers today, but once was fueled by the freedom to harness creativity in an immature economic/political environment.

The almost intact mill's machinery will disappear into history this Monday during a silent auction. The building's shell will house condominiums.

Mill's history grinds to an end (11/23/07) ydr.com

Chrysler is showing three hybrid concept cars at the Detroit auto show including,

The Jeep Renegade Hybrid.

The small, sporty off-roader combines the lithium-ion battery with electric motors, and the entire package is powered by a Bluetec diesel engine. Chrysler claims mileage of about 110 mpg, partially aided by a lightweight aluminum body. auto123.com

Gee, i wonder if there is a market for a small SUV with a Diamler diesel that gets 110mpg... just build it guys.

A new paper-based technology lowers cost and may increase durability due to vibration.

In the past few years, motorcycles have begun to sprout catalytic converters. Around 2006, rules for emissions on motorcycles began to catch up with cars that have been forced to comply for years.

According to the EPA,

nearly one fifth of motorcycles sold in recent years in the United States (or near 100,000 per year) have been equipped with emission control devices, meaning that there are likely near 200,000 or more motorcycles with catalysts on the road today.

Under the old rules, federal motorcycle emission standard for hydrocarbon emissions was about
90 times the hydrocarbon standard of passenger cars. And, while many motorcycles actually met the 2003 California motorcycle emission standard, the California hydrocarbon standard at the time was about 20 times the 2003 federal passenger car limit. epa.gov

The new standards reduce motorcycle riders’ exposure to air toxics and particulate matter and help states achieve their air quality goals, however, the cost squeezes a manufacturer on a bike costing a couple thousand dollars.

Traditional car catalytic converters use ceramics, which wouldn't survive well with motorcycle vibration. Motorcycles use converters made from nickel and other metals that can better withstand vibrations. The weight of the devices and the high price of the metals has limited their application to larger and more expensive motorcycles.

F.C.C. Co., a manufacturer of clutches for motorcycles and cars and whose leading shareholder is Honda, has devised a catalytic converter made from paper for cleaning motorcycle exhaust. The company hopes to commercialize the product by 2010 at a price point that enables its application even on scooters. greencarcongress.com

About 62 cents a mile on average, according to calculations based on a formula by Califonia AAA with gas selling for $3.50 a gallon. That's up from 56 cents a mile a year ago. The cost varies from about 45 cents a mile for a small car to close to 70 cents for a sport-utility vehicle or van. The AAA form is based on gas selling at $2.26 a gallon, so update the numbers to figure in today's price of about $3.50 a gallon. mercurynews.com

Interesting to note that it can cost 30 cents more a mile to drive a large SUV/car/van over a small car. And we don't have $3.50 gas, yet.

Honda's hydrogen fuel cell Clarity, goes 100 mph top speed and acts like a regular car but will only be available in California in 2008. California is the only state with a hydrogen infrastructure large enough to handle a large scale lease.

How it's fuel cell system works...

Inside each cell, hydrogen gas reacts with a hydrogen electrode, causing a catalytic reaction that ionizes the hydrogen atom (electricity is of course nothing but flowing electrons). The electron-less atom (ion) next bonds with oxygen to create water, which recirculates through the stack to keep the electrolytic membranes damp, before exiting the vehicle through the tail pipe. In turn, the fuel cell stack powers an electric motor, which drives the front wheels. There is also an auxiliary lithium ion battery to store extra juice created by the stack, the motor (which behaves like a generator when decelerating) and additional energy gathered from the regenerative braking system. The battery is used during start-up or to assist the engine if the demands of the right foot exceed the power output of the stack. jalopnik.com

The new EPA fuel economy stickers have taken over car dealers and while their lower numbers are probably not a very good marketing tool, they are a more accurate gauge of consumption and cost.
The former 30-year-old system of determining fuel economy was replaced this year by a measure that takes into account 2007 concepts like using the A/C and traffic.

Changes in percentages appear to affect larger numbers more. A small car that got 45 mpg may look like it is getting worse mileage than an SUV that gets 10 if both numbers are skewed 20%. Hybrid numbers have been affected most because they were judged based on standards developed when a Chrysler was a Newport.

Be nice to the car salesman. The cars haven't changed, just our perception.

A discrepancy: Emissions and fuel use between cars and light trucks is held in question.

Last week a federal court voided new regulations for 2008-2011 model year vehicles and told the Transportation Department to produce new rules taking into account the value of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The ruling, which is likely to be appealed to the Supreme Court, represents a major setback for both the auto industry and the White House at a time of growing public concern over the rising price of gasoline and the issue of climate change.

Under the rule rejected today (11/15), the average fuel economy of light trucks was to rise to 23.5 miles per gallon in 2010, up from the current standard of 22.5 miles per gallon, but still well below the standard for passenger cars of 27.5 miles per gallon. nyt.com

By nature, larger displacement engines and heavier bodies of light trucks will use more fuel and create more carbon dioxide than cars. What goes in, must come out.

Mini-split heat pumps get more efficient and disappear into walls

Mini-split heat pump systems are a great solution for cooling and (secondary) heating. The LG Art Cool is literally disappearing into the woodwork.

The concept of a heat pump is that heat is transferred from either inside your house to outside or vice versa. You are literally moving energy rather than creating heat by burning fuel. The more efficiently this transfer can take place the cheaper it is to keep heat inside or outside your home.

If a heat (pump) transfer system were 100% efficient then, in theory, it would cost nothing to heat your home because you would not consume energy, only transfer it.

Although a modern heat pump is extremely efficient, various factors rob efficiency. Electricity must be created and sent though wires to power the pump. The conversion of fuel to electricity is inefficient. The motor itself and the freon that carries energy creates heat and friction further eroding efficiency. The colder it gets outside, the harder a heat pump has to work to pull energy from the outside. When the temperature dips into the 20's, most heat pumps will surpass their ability to efficiently suck heat from outside, though a few work down to 0 degrees F.

Mini-splits are perfect for retrofitting older homes, adding some additional innovations that help them become more efficient over centralized systems.

You have an old steam system in an historic home. Though charming and producing some fantastic radiant and convective heat, steam systems are particularly inefficient when it's warm out, but very comfortable when it's very cold out. You don't want ductwork ruining the original architecture and taking up space, cut big holes in walls... mini-splits to the rescue.

A mini-split heat pump allows several separately zoned, usually 2-4 individual room units, to run off one compressor unit. The LG system actually scales the work of the compressor outside to match the current demands of each thermostat. Only a 1 1/2 inch hole is needed through a wall to pass refrigerant lines from inside to out.

A combination of scaled compressor and room zoning, where you can heat and cool only what is needed adds efficiency to a heat pump system. Using a mini-split systems in an older, larger home already served by a primary heat source can really add efficiency and save money.

Interesting payback calculator: heat pump vs. burned fuel
hvacopcost.com

Of note: When electrical deregulation is complete residential electrical rates in Pennsylvania may be about 29% more.
greenmesh (9/1/07)

The price of corn has risen due to the perceived demand, driving up the cost of other crops that have not been planted because corn has become more profitable. We can add beer to the list of milk, soy...

The flower used to stabilize beer and give it flavor was available in abundance in recent years, lowering the price. This - coupled with the rising price of corn for ethanol - led farmers to switch crops. This year, the global acreage devoted to hops was half of what it was a decade ago, and the market finally caught up. ydr.com/news

Ethanol, a highly government subsidized product, has increased the cost of food across the board. Using food stock to produce fuel is a fundamentally flawed principal unless you can profit from a surge in food prices.

You may think that high food prices helps the family farm down the street, but the family farm is not the benefactor of this cycle.

Farm subsidies paid out in the United States over the period 1996 to 1998, amounted to $ 22.856 billion. And more than 60% of these federal farm subsidies under the Freedom to Farm Act of 1996 went to the top 10% of farmers and landowners or an average of $100,000 each, while the bottom 90% of the farmers got just $6900 for the three years.ewg.org

This was the year (2007) the antiquated and expensive farm subsidy program was to be reformed.

A growing chorus has turned against the $16 billion annual subsidy, which gives most of the money to corporate farms rather than the small farmers for whom the program was designed during the Depression. washingtonpost.com

If costing three digits to fill up the typical American full-sized pickup isn't a wake-up call, perhaps the case of beer costing three digits in back is.

Ethanol is yet another seized opportunity of a mature business climate that has lost the ability to innovate; rather than to seek a solution for energy independence for the country as a whole. In reality, a pure capitalist system's goal is just to make money. You hope a few heroes and visionaries step forward.

In a democracy, it is up to government and the people who put government in power to demand a future.

Solar Electric Vehicles, of Califonia, makes a system of solar cells conformed to the roof of a vehicle by embedding the solar cells into fiberglass and custom molding it.

With the SEV solar system, the Toyota Prius can operate up to 20 miles per day in electric mode thus improving fuel economy by up to 29% (depending on driving habits and conditions).

The company soon will be producing solar panels for Toyota's Rav4 EV and Highlander, two vehicles with very flat roofs. Solar Electrical Vehicles has sold about 130 conversion kits for the Prius. The system drinks up solar power and uses motorcycle batteries hidden in the rear well to supplement the manufacturer's battery.

Solar Electrical Vehicles' solar-conversion kits can supplement "plug-in" hybrids conversions. A traditional hybrid charges its electrical battery from energy created when the gas engine is running and from braking. The plug-in hybrid can plug it into a regular wall socket overnight and start the day with a fully charged battery. That can reduce the amount of gas the Prius uses, however, fuel is still burned to make the electricity.

The solar kit takes it one step further, pushing the motorist further off the grid.

more info: scrippsnews.com

The Full-Parallel-Hybrid System developed by Porsche should enable the ultra high end 4x4 to achieve approximately 26 mpg but don't look for it before the end of the decade. Porsche will show off the Cayenne Hybrid at the L.A. Auto Show.
newcarnet.co.uk

There is a new/old color for the Christmas tree. We have come a long way from the red eye LED lights of the 1980's. Soft white has joined the ranks of the dazzling array of LED colors that have up until now not provided a light soft enough to be a replacement for a classic warm filament bulb.

I plugged them in, nice color, but they still have that strange high cycle flutter that when I stare at them makes me want to go into convulsions.

The sales pitch is that the bulb will pay for itself in a few years because it uses about 88% less power than a traditional filament bulb and lasts over 10 times longer making up for the price surcharge which can be 5 times a filament set. This is indeed great news for reducing energy consumption. They are also more sturdy than glass tubes.

However, holiday lighting manufacturers tell people to change the light sets every few years. This contradictory pile of information would lead one to believe that they will never pay for themselves.

My conclusion is that even if you never realize a spread sheet cost advantage, it is a holiday message of cheer against the gloom of global warming. Just the fact that holiday lights remind people of energy consumption is a plus. No doubt the price of LED's will drop and the cost of electricity will increase in coming years.

Light emitting diodes are tiny semi-conductors (or gates) with a specific purpose for electrons that fit into an electrical circuit. Unlike incandescent bulbs, they don't have a filament that generates light by the resistance of electrons pushed amass over a narrow gateway.

In a traditional filament bulb, energy is lost due to heat and a spectrum of light we cannot see. While passing through the LED, the electron is specifically “told" how to release its energy in a specific wavelength without the inefficiencies of loss due to heat and random wavelengths that we cannot see or aren’t the color we want to see.

Previous blog entry about Christmas LED lights at Rocky Ridge (12/2006)

Escalade will use the same 2-Mode hybrid powertrain as both the Yukon and Tahoe hybrids. It was on display at the auto show in Miami this week.

According to GM, the use of the hybrid system increases fuel economy by at least 50% anyway. If you figure that the standard 6.2L Escalade is good for 9 or 10 real-world MPG combined, it should be good for at least 18 mpg or so on the highway. We doubt it'll match the 21/22 (2WD) and 20/20 (4WD) city/hwy EPA ratings of the Tahoe Hybrid simply because the 'Slade outweighs it by 110 pounds in 2WD form and 181 when equipped with 4WD. autoblog.com

GM doesn't plan on lightening the vehicle as they have done some feather tricks with the Yukon and Tahoe. Their target customers don't want to loose any...luxury? It can tow 6,000 lbs with the 2WD truck and 5,700 lbs with the 4WD.

The thought of parking, driving something that huge, or paying $62,000 for something that consumes fuel at a rate at more than double of an efficient car is somewhat horrifying to me, but a 50% increase in fuel economy on paper is amazing without changing the weight of the vehicle.

I would love to see fuel saving technology applied to the Cobalt, GM's home grown economy 4 cylinder car that gets about as the same mileage (24/33) as the V-6 in the new Malibu (22/30). While GM has taken great care to build a really nice looking new Malibu, the hybrid version is only a couple miles better than their gas-only version (24/32) for a hefty surcharge.

"EPA-EST. 30 HIGHWAY MPG IS PRETTY COMMON AT CHEVY.", reads chevrolet.com/fueleconomy/GM is sliding into the the hybrid scene with the towing, big SUV domestic luxury scene, a market not tapped into as deeply by the Japanese players. Lower volume, higher profit margin vehicles are less risky and allow a softer roll out in the event their new technology has a few glitches.

Yes, yes... safe, improving mileage in their segment, working in an unexploited niche..selling green as a premium feature... a place card hybrid nameplate for a car with fuel economy future. American car drivers want... I can hear the executives talking.

I am getting sleepy.

$159 a barrel by 2030 with 270 million cars in China

As gasoline prices quietly scrolled past $3 a gallon locally this week and a barrel of crude nears $100 there wasn't much to say here at greenmesh, though it's an oozing fissure in the dome of the volcanic energy crisis.

Those in the energy industry who can profit this quarter are not saying much as those who just "need" a 7-liter pickup truck to commute to work from their well heated, over-sized house. Life, aside from accelerating dollars in and out of a pockets, goes on.

The International Energy Agency in it's annual World Energy Outlook has taken a more pessimistic view over previous projections that in the past said pumping trillions of dollars into sucking oil out of the earth could meet global energy needs.

$100,000,000,000 in today's dollars could shift us to Hydrogen according to Peter Schwartz, a former futurist for Shell Oil, who is an investor in two companies developing hydrogen power technologies and Doug Randall, Global Business Network.

With that investment, the nation could shift the balance of power from foreign oil producers to US energy consumers within a decade. By 2013, a third of all new cars sold could be hydrogen-powered, 15 percent of the nation's gas stations could pump hydrogen, and the US could get more than half its energy from domestic sources, putting independence within reach.

All that's missing is a national commitment to make it happen. wired.com

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Iraq War Cost

I welcome $3 a gallon for gasoline. These small warning signs dotting the landscape are a wake-up call of what is to come. There is a price at the pump where an informed democracy will force a solution with it's tax dollars; perhaps that number is $4, $5 or $10.

Here are some projections by the IEA:
The staggering pace of Chinese and Indian economic growth in the past few years, outstripping that of all other major countries, has pushed up sharply their energy needs, a growing share of which has to be imported. Free trade means increased standard of living for developing countries. The world’s energy needs would be well over 50% higher in 2030 than today.

Oil demand for transport almost quadruples in China between 2005 and 2030, contributing more than two-thirds of the overall increase in Chinese oil demand. The vehicle fleet expands seven-fold, reaching almost 270 million. New vehicle sales in China exceed those of the United States by around 2015.

Since the light bulb was invented, those who savor the night have fought light pollution. Today, Coal accounts for about 33 percent of U.S. energy production (nma.org). Wasted energy that drifts into space accounts for hundreds of power plants burning coal, oil and natural gas to bring daylight to the night, most of which is overkill and redundant.

Hundreds of cities and counties are trying to curb bright lights, and at least a dozen states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico and Texas among them — have lighting laws covering highways and state projects.

The International Dark-Sky Association in Tucson, which promotes better outdoor lighting, is intent on making the Milky Way visible to more people across the USA. It's starting to work. usatoday.com/tech

More than 30 billion kilowatt-hours of energy is wasted because many of us simply forget to shut down our computers when we’re not using them. If we could just improve the efficiency of how we use our PCs, the savings in energy costs would be over $3 billion! The CO2 emissions from just 15 computers are equivalent in energy terms to the gas consumption used by one car.

A barrel of oil contains 42 gallons and produces an average 556 kilowatt hours of electrical power. Now consider your computer. A good spec PC can use up to 200 watts per hour. If you have a CRT monitor, it adds a further 80 watts (TFT screens use less). So your system is consuming over 1 KWh of power for every four hours of normal use. If you leave your computer on 24/7, that’s the equivalent of a whole barrel of oil every 90 days!

if you leave the PC on with just a screen saver on the CRT when you’re not using it, it’s STILL using up to 280 watts per hour of completely wasted power. Power that pumps out 1.5lbs of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere for every KWh. If left on for 24 hours that’s 9lbs of CO2 every day and 3,285lbs per year. That’s more than 1.6 tons of CO2 thrown up into the atmosphere just to keep your one single PC working.

localcooling.com a software developer that has a free program to customize your power management. I didn't try it.

There has been alot of talk about when Lithium-ion batteries will be available in the Toyota Prius here in the states. General Motors has been waiting for a supplier to invent something for it's concept Volt electric car with an on board internal combustion engine generator.

The Li-ion soft sell in Japan is most likely a testing phase for Toyota before it has to deal with the product on a world-wide scale. The Prius itself was available for several years in Japan before it made it to the United States.

Which leads back to a continuous observation; why aren't our corporations, with CEOs who make millions, first with these things to give our country a global edge.

If I made seven figures a year, you can bet I would be in my garage up at at 3 a.m. with a few test tubes, a couple wires and a chemistry book particularly when my global counterpart was taking my market away and kicking my a__. This thinking is what made our auto industry great in the early 20th century. They were inventors not profit managers rewarded for a faded vision.

Since 2003, the lithium-ion battery has been part of an "intelligent package" for Toyota Motor Corp.'s Vitz subcompact — although the feature still isn't widespread among Japanese consumers. About 700 of the Vitz with the feature were sold this year.

Toyota Executive Vice President Masatami Takimoto told The Associated Press recently the company hasn't marketed the feature aggressively because battery supplies are limited and the company can't respond to massive demand.

But the feature is available at dealers, and consumers can get them if they ask for it.

"We don't tell everybody about it," Takimoto said. "But we already have our own lithium-ion battery."iht.com

...but as market share and jobs slide away have our boys in Detroit matured into senility?

Remarks by L.L. Colbert, president, Chrysler Corporation in 1959 (valiant.org)

It is a great pleasure to meet with you again this afternoon at this first formal showing of the Valiant. All of us at Chrysler are extremely happy about this car, and we feel sure it is going to make automotive history. We have always been actively interested in the market possibilities for economy cars, and as I have told many of you on other occasions. we were somewhat ahead of the rest of the industry in going to cars with a shorter wheelbase back in the early 1950s. It turned out that those cars were just a little premature. But over the years, and long before the 1950s, we had done a lot of experimenting with small cars and small-car components.

In 1956, the market for the small imported cars began to grow rapidly, and we felt this was the first clear indication of a new kind of opportunity in the American automobile market.

In the mid ‘50s, Detroit was just plain arrogant. They had forgotten just who they were building their cars for. Heavier, costlier, wider, gasoline hungry, chrome laden, soft suspension, lousy brakes, and planned obsolescence. However, the ever increasing growth of import buying did get Detroit’s attention. From Germany and Japan, by the mid 1950s, imports were garnering over 670,000 cars a year. No small number anymore. That much sales loss could no longer be ignored. So, with much reluctance, Detroit automobile executives grudgingly ordered smaller cars into production. (valiant.org)

My first car was a 1968 Plymouth Valiant with a straight 3.7 liter (225 cid) 6 cylinder angled at 30 degrees. The "slant" six was developed by Chrysler for lower hood lines (aerodynamics) and allowed the intake runners to all be the same length aiding in combustion from the carburetor. The noisy solid lifter engine and TorqueFlite transmission were indestructible.

The tiny 1 barrel carburetor and a rather slow, tall gear ratio was capable of squeezing 30 mpg on the highway with a light foot which was excellent for the vintage. The car had no power steering, no power brakes and no A/C, but the drivers that owned it didn't care as the little Plymouth drove past lines at the pump during the oil crisis of 1973 and helped me out as prices climbed through the next oil crisis in 1981.

The car was old when it was given to me by my mother who had bought it used from a car lot for $500. The former Bell System (phone company) fleet car carried me into my first journalism job at which point I gave it to my aunt, who gave it to my cousin. It died of oil pump failure about 1990 with the original engine and transmission.

Ok guys... where is our Plymouth Valiant

Indian hybrid SUV with ties to Jeep

India's top utility vehicle and tractor maker, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd , plans to market hybrid SUVs in the United States, its managing director said on Friday.

The Mahindra Scorpio

"Given the growing opposition to SUVs in the United States, we have a plan to market hybrid SUVs," Anand Mahindra said at a conference on climate change. (reuters)

The company has said it will begin selling its Scorpio SUV in the United States from 2008.

Mahindra & Mahindra Limited isn't new to the 4x4 business as it has been assembling Jeeps since the late 1940's under license of Kaiser Jeep and later American Motors. Those vehicles were made with mostly Indian content.

The Scorpio is a world car sold in Malaysia, South Africa, Russia, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Chile as a common rail diesel.

A review:
thetruthaboutcars.com

Any guess as to how they will make up that profit loss going forward?

(AP/Nov. 1) - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services on Thursday warned it may lower its credit ratings on food maker Kraft Foods Inc. after the company's third-quarter profit sank 20 percent, partly due to high dairy costs.

S&P noted that the company's margins will likely remained pressured through the fourth quarter and into 2008 by higher commodity costs, particularly for dairy. Dairy costs have skyrocketed due to international demand for milk and higher animal feed costs. Animal feed is made from corn, which has risen to record levels due to demand for the alternative fuel ethanol. Corn is also used to make the fuel. cnn.com/money

The 300-hp engine that runs on 100 percent ethanol (E100) has virtually no chance of coming here due to the lack of infrastructure for pure ethanol. We burn a percentage fuel mixture of ethanol known as E85.

Thanks to increased airflow and higher compression ratios made possible by the octane-rich E100 (equivalent to 106-octane gasoline), the BioPower 100 cranks out 300 horsepower and 295 pounds-feet of torque from its turbocharged 2.0-liter engine. That's double the output of the gas turbo that runs in the European 9-5 2.0t. The concept car can run from zero to 60 mph in the low six-second range; it would easily dust its mild-mannered twin, which makes the run in a leisurely 9.6 seconds.

Combined city and highway gas mileage is about 25 mpg. That represents a 20 percent drop from gas mileage in the 9-5 2.0t cars.com

The engine also runs on E85 and gasoline, but without the kick and I would suppose better fuel economy.

General Motors began production of its two-mode hybrid transmission this week at the Allison Transmission plant in White Marsh, Md., with the first units are earmarked for the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid and GMC Yukon Hybrid which will be at dealers by the end of the year.

The two-mode hybrid transmission houses two electric motors and four fixed gears inside the same space as a conventional automatic. The unit was designed as a join venture of GM, Chrysler and BMW. With computer variations, the transmission can take on a wide spectrum of personality from a BMW X5 to a Chevy truck.

The two-mode hybrid system will be extended next year to the Cadillac Escalade, the Chevrolet Silverado Crew Cab and the GMC Sierra Crew Cab. It also will be used this fall on the 2008 Chrysler Aspen and Dodge Durango. Hybrid versions of those SUVs are expected to appear later this month at the Los Angeles auto show. BMW showed a similar two-mode system last month on the X6 crossover it unveiled at the Frankfurt show.
edmunds.com

Earlier greenmesh entry: The global hybrid cooperation (04/2006)