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Wooden VW Beetle
A couple have covered their cherished VW Beetle in oak. Amazing to look at, and it evens drives ok.
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Vehicles Powered Completely By Air (NO JOKE)
Like never before I need a second opinion... Is this for real?!
(Where is Russell Gehrke when I need him?)
Is it possible to exponentiate energy? This video claims that through various stages of compression technology, energy can be created and not entirely lost..
The CAR is POWERED by .. AIR. (under pressure)
Poof!
~I want to be a believer.
'Although it costs money to create the compressed air, that energy is actually created by, compressed air..'
Geoff Lawton, a permaculture design proffesional, says that 'it's not how much water you have in a system, it's how many times you use that water/energy.. within the system.' And I loosely quote, 'If you have one gallon of water, and you use it once, well then you have one gallon of water.. If you take that one gallon of water, and use it ten times, well then you have ten gallons of water.
Your take? Like never before I need a second opinion... Is this for real?! (Where is Russell Gehrke when I need him?) ... more -
Beijing to Impose Odd-Even Car Ban During Olympics
In addition to regulating its 3.3 million vehicles, Beijing is temporarily halting construction and operations at industrial plants in an effort to reduce emissions.
Those and further steps to clean the air,
could something like this be started in the USA? In addition to regulating its 3.3 million vehicles, Beijing is temporarily halting construction and operations at industrial plants in... more -
Motor Show: Lotus shows off solar-powered Eco Elise
Few cars are as carbon neutral as the Eco Elise from Lotus. It’s just a prototype at the moment, but packing hemp bodywork, woven seats and solar panels means its one of the most futuristic cars around.
Created as part of Lotus’ drive to become the “green consultancy” of the motoring world, it shows how eco-friendly materials can be used to create cars without sacrificing quality or speed.
Every aspect of the Eco Elise’s production has been made cleaner and greener. Even the paint used is water-based, to reduce emissions and chemicals used in its production.
The hemp hard top of the Eco Elise also has two flexible solar panels neatly
embedded. When driving around, they suck power from the sky to fuel electrical systems that would otherwise drain energy from the engine.
Lotus’s attention to detail is exquisite. Even the Elise’s audio system has been refined, with a lightweight speaker system from Alpine saving 1.5kg in weight.
Add to that the car’s use of a “red light” system to help drivers exert the maximum efficiency from each gear change, and you’ve got one seriously planet-friendly sports car. Did we mention it looks the business too? Check out our gallery below for a closer look. Few cars are as carbon neutral as the Eco Elise from Lotus. It’s just a prototype at the moment, but packing hemp bodywork, woven seat... more -
Karl Krantz lights up the 30 inch clears on the Garfield Box
Orange '85 Chevy Caprice doing a burnout.
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Kids drive cars
Strange news story about a driving school for children … that's run by children.
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Cheap Fuel Efficient Cars?
It’s easy to get sidetracked by the marketing blitz. There are plenty of fuel efficient cars that are neither hybrids nor new. Looking to the conventional used car market for your next vehicle purchase might be a prudent financial move. With the lack of depreciation in many hybrid models, the attractiveness of an older Honda Civic or Geo Metro - which are known to deliver 40 miles per gallon or more - has spiked like it’s closing time at the bar.
You can overlook a lot of things when gas is over four dollars a gallon and you have no alternatives.
Fixing up older fuel efficient cars just might become a national meme. The newfound interest in some of these long forgotten gems is unprecedented. When the first gas crisis hit in the 1970s, we had little to fall back on. Today we have nearly three decades of gas-stingy vehicles to choose from, nevermind the rust, dings, dents, and rips. It’s easy to get sidetracked by the marketing blitz. There are plenty of fuel efficient cars that are neither hybrids nor new. Looking... more -
vauxhall insignia wikid launch!
vauxhall invited us to a mystery launch of one of their new cars the INSIGNIA..brilliant entrance check it out! x
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Switchover to Fuel Cell Vehicles Will Cut Emissions, Cost Billions
Fuel cell technologies have the potential to greatly curtail the U.S.'s oil use and carbon dioxide emissions, but extensive public and private investment are necessary to make a significant impact in the coming decades, according to the National Research Council.
The group researched and developed a best case scenario for fuel cell development and deployment in the U.S., publishing it's findings the report "Transitions to Alternative Transportation Technologies: A Focus on Hydrogen." The main barriers to widespread use of fuel cell vehicles, the report concludes, are vehicle price and lack of production and distribution infrastructure.
Even with increased funding and research, the cost of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles won't be competitive with fossil fuel-burning vehicles until 2023. The Council says fuel cell vehicle production could start ramping up in 2015, with about 2 million vehicles maximum on the roads by 2020.
Once the cost barrier comes down, there could be 60 million fuel cell vehicles zipping around by 2035 and 200 million by 2050. The Council takes into account the cost of hydrogen fuel over a vehicle's lifetime in comparing its cost to conventional vehicles.
That best case scenario can only be met with vigorous investment and action. The Council says the government will need to put up $55 billion in funding from 2008-2023, and private industry will need to pump $145 billion into fuel cells during the same period.
Currently, the federal government is running the $1.2 billion Hydrogen Fuel Initiative, which was announced at the 2003 State of the Union Address. On the West Coast, the California Fuel Cell Partnership is working to spread the use of fuel cell vehicles and hydrogen fueling stations. Fuel cell technologies have the potential to greatly curtail the U.S.'s oil use and carbon dioxide emissions, but extensive public and... more -
They’re Electric, but Can They Be Fantastic?
ELECTRIC cars are the future. That, at least, is the message automakers are sending to consumers as they trumpet big plans for cars that can bypass the gas pump.
Of course, backers of electric vehicles, or E.V.’s, floated those assurances in the 1970s, ‘80s, and ‘90s, when General Motors released its star-crossed EV1. Today, almost no one drives an electric car.
But with a gallon of premium gas topping $3 on average, and as carmakers and entrepreneurs pour money into the latest generation of electric cars, the prospects appear brighter.
Trading the internal combustion engine for batteries could bring well-publicized advantages: reducing pollution, raising mileage, promoting energy independence. E.V.’s and plug-in hybrids could deliver the gasoline equivalent of 100 miles a gallon or more. For consumers, that would in effect roll back the clock to buck-a-gallon gas. Car owners could save money in their sleep, recharging in the off hours when electricity is cheapest. ELECTRIC cars are the future. That, at least, is the message automakers are sending to consumers as they trumpet big plans for cars th... more -
Comparing Hybrid and Electric Vehicles
First shown at the Paris auto show in 2004, the two-seat Venturi Fetish roadster, powered by lithium-ion batteries, has a claimed top speed of 100 m.p.h. and a one-hour charging time. First shown at the Paris auto show in 2004, the two-seat Venturi Fetish roadster, powered by lithium-ion batteries, has a claimed top ... more
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Ford to Make Broader Bet on Small Cars
The Ford Motor Company, which devoted itself for nearly 20 years to putting millions of Americans into big pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles, is about to drastically alter its focus to building more small cars.
The struggling automaker, reacting to what it sees as a rapid and permanent shift in consumer tastes brought on by high gas prices, plans to unveil its new direction on Thursday, when it will report quarterly earnings.
Among the changes, Ford is expected to announce that it will convert three of its North American assembly plants from trucks to cars, according to people familiar with the plans.
And as part of the huge bet it is placing on the future direction of the troubled American auto industry, Ford will realign factories to manufacture more fuel-efficient engines and produce six of its next European car models for the United States market.
The company will also end speculation about its Mercury division by making the brand an integral part of its new small-car strategy, according to these people, who spoke on the condition that they not be quoted by name because of the timing of the official announcement on Thursday.
The Ford Motor Company, which devoted itself for nearly 20 years to putting millions of Americans into big pickup trucks and sport-uti... more -
Cheaper Gas Websites
The cost of gas is out of control with no relief in sight. What is a consumer to do? Here are some cheap gas websites that are supposed to take some of the pain out of the pump. The cost of gas is out of control with no relief in sight. What is a consumer to do? Here are some cheap gas websites that are suppose... more
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BMW Hydrogen 7: A Sedan Fueled by the Future
As with hydrogen cars from Ford, General Motors, Honda and others, showcasing hydrogen’s carbon-free potential is the BMW’s reason for being. But unlike far-costlier fuel-cell cars — which generate electricity through a chemical reaction of gaseous hydrogen and oxygen — the BMW runs on either liquid hydrogen or gasoline in a familiar internal-combustion engine. As with hydrogen cars from Ford, General Motors, Honda and others, showcasing hydrogen’s carbon-free potential is the BMW’s reason for... more
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UFO crashes in London, promotes new Vauxhall car
The rocket which appears to have embedded itself into the banks of the Thames at Potters' Fields Park near the capital's City Hall is actually a teaser for the world launch tomorrow of Vauxhall's new Insignia model.
Though the scene may have sci-fi shades of Doctor Who or Professor Quatermass, it is actually the run-up to what the car company predicts will be a 'jaw-dropping' stunt involving the new vehicle potentially being suspended from a great height. The rocket which appears to have embedded itself into the banks of the Thames at Potters' Fields Park near the capital's City Hall is... more -
In India, Cheap Car Will Challenge Two-Wheelers
It is billed as the world's cheapest car — and the world is eager for it to hit the streets of India.
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Transformers Corvette concept shows some tush
Someone slipped Jalopnik a new pair of shots of the mysterious Corvette concept that’s appearing in next year’s Transformers sequel.
So far, we’ve seen good views of the car from the front and side, but rear-end shots had yet to surface. Well, that’s over.
The concept — now a confirmed product of the GM Design studios (note the plate in back), has large ducts in back that mimic the openings in front and presumably also hide the car’s taillamps. Four big centrally-mounted exhaust outlets poke through the bodywork as well.
Frankly, the rear view is the car’s least appealing, with that chunky boattail mixed in with all those sharp angles. There’s also a new detail shot of the front quarter, which focuses on that very traditional Corvette fender shape. Is it just a movie character or also a concept that GM’s going to drop on us somewhere along the line? Your guess is as good as ours, and the trickle of spy shots is probably far from over. Someone slipped Jalopnik a new pair of shots of the mysterious Corvette concept that’s appearing in next year’s Transformers sequel. ... more -
Carmakers 'send message' with new logos
When the Insignia, a new car from the General Motors brands Opel and Vauxhall, is introduced this week at the London Motor Show, it will come, fittingly, with some new insignias.
Opel, General Motors' biggest-selling division in continental Europe, and Vauxhall, its equivalent in Britain, are getting new logos as the company aims to "send a message that something is happening with these brands," said Alain Visser, chief marketing officer at GM Europe.
The new Vauxhall badge shows the brand's longtime mascot, a griffin, in a bigger, bolder way, zooming in on his upper body. The mythical beast, which joins the head and wings of an eagle to the body of a lion, also appears more three-dimensional; previous versions of the griffin were flat.
The Opel logo, a stylized lightning bolt, also gets more depth in the redesign, though the general shape is unchanged.
In giving Opel and Vauxhall an updated look, General Motors joins a series of other automakers, including Volvo, Fiat, Chrysler and Mercedes-Benz, that have recently refreshed or redesigned their logos, seeking an edge in a difficult market. When the Insignia, a new car from the General Motors brands Opel and Vauxhall, is introduced this week at the London Motor Show, it wi... more -
Hamilton in charge of title race after German F1 win
Brit F1 driver Lewis Hamilton won the German Grand Prix in thrilling style.
The 23-year-old dominated the early stages in his McLaren Mercedes-Benz, and then, after being upset by two Safety Car interventions and some cautious team strategy, showed off an incredible array of passing moves in the final laps.
Many have said that Hamilton could be responsible for breathing new life and youthful energy into the sport.
Brit F1 driver Lewis Hamilton won the German Grand Prix in thrilling style. ... more -
Hi-Tech windshield deisnged for old drivers
Researches for General Motors corp. are working on a futuristic new windshield which uses lasers, infrared sensors, and a camera to enhance the detail of the road ahead, so that drivers with vision problems can see more clearly, and hence drive more safely.
The technology, though only in the preliminary stages of development, could prove extremely useful in the future: the 65 and over population is set to double in the US over the next 20 years. Researches for General Motors corp. are working on a futuristic new windshield which uses lasers, infrared sensors, and a camera to en... more
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