Official: Nissan announces "Power 88" business plan, all-new vehicles every ... - Autoblog (blog)

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) on Jun 27th 2011 at 6:31PM

Carlos Ghosn announces the Nissan Power 88 plan in Yokohama – Click above to watch video after the jump
Carlos Ghosn has announced the Nissan Power 88 midterm business plan, effective immediately, containing goals that will raise a number of eyebrows. Built on four pillars emphasizing "brand and sales power enhancement, growth, sustainable mobility and mobility for all," Power 88 is in effect from now until 2016, at the end of which time Nissan wants eight percent of global market share and eight-percent operating profit (hence the "88"). That would represent a 2.2-percent increase in market share and a 1.9-percent rise in operating profit versus last year's levels.
The strategy for success includes rolling out, "on average, an all-new vehicle every six weeks for six years" to cover 92 percent of global market segments, launching 90 new technologies over those six years and reaching cumulative electric vehicle sales of 1.5 million units between Renault and Nissan.

Sales in BRIC markets are expected to grow significantly, and Nissan plans to build a factory in Brazil to support efforts there. Much more will be made of Infiniti as well, with sales expected to rocket from 150,000 last year to 500,000 in 2016 and a product portfolio of "at least 10 vehicles." That would account for a projected 10 percent of global luxury market sales.

Ghosn has his eye on joining General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen in the massive sales game, apparently because he sees that as the scale necessary to meet future challenges. Whether or not the automaker can manage such scale remains to be seen. There's a video and a press release with the nitty gritty after the jump.

"NISSAN POWER 88" MIDTERM BUSINESS PLAN ANNOUNCED
Plan emphasizes brand and sales power enhancement, growth, sustainable mobility and mobility for all

YOKOHAMA, June 27, 2011 - Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., today announced a wide-ranging, six-year business plan that will accelerate the company's growth across new markets and segments. The plan for fiscal years 2011 to 2016, called "Nissan Power 88," is effective immediately.

The name of the plan emphasizes key corporate goals: Nissan will renew its focus on the overall customer experience through actions that elevate its brands' power and sales power. By the end of fiscal 2016, the company will aim to achieve a global market share of 8% and increase its corporate operating profit to a sustainable 8%.

Highlights of Nissan Power 88 reflect Nissan's clear, global vision and strategic direction through fiscal 2016: Nissan's extended new product plan will deliver, on average, an all-new vehicle every six weeks for six years. The company's global portfolio will have 66 vehicles and will cover 92% of all markets and segments.The emphasis on sustainable mobility will continue, encompassing zero-emission vehicles and low-emission technologies that support PURE DRIVE. Cumulative electric vehicle sales for the Renault-Nissan Alliance will reach 1.5 million units."Mobility for all" will expand with dedicated new cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) developed for entry-level segments and emerging markets.Nissan will introduce more than 90 new, advanced technologies, averaging 15 per year."Nissan Power 88 is the roadmap for our company's profitable growth," said Nissan President and Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn. "We will accelerate our growth, bringing more innovation and excitement to our products and services as well as cleaner, more affordable cars for everyone around the world, in line with the energy and environmental challenges of the 21st century."
Nissan will increase investments in its brands and retail networks to enhance its customers' entire ownership experience. Nissan currently has 6,000 major points of sales globally; the retail network will expand to 7,500 in the midterm plan period.

Business expansion will focus on growth markets and further developing the company's Infiniti and light commercial businesses.

In 2012, Nissan will have a production capacity of 1.2 million units in China. China has become - and will continue to be - Nissan's largest single global market. Nissan aims for a 10% share of the Chinese market. Nissan will also increase its presence in Brazil, Russia and India, as well as in the next wave of emerging markets.In Brazil, Nissan will build a new plant, with a capacity of 200,000 units as a first step.Nissan NV200's selection as New York City's "Taxi of Tomorrow" illustrates the company's momentum in the LCV field. By 2016, Nissan will be the world's leading light commercial vehicle manufacturer.The Infiniti premium brand will grow from its 2010 sales level of 150,000 vehicles to 10% of global market share among luxury brand segments, a level today that would represent 500,000 vehicles.1 Infiniti will be present in more than 70 markets with a product range of at least 10 vehicles."Nissan Power 88 is a demanding business plan, but our company has a proven track record of achieving challenging objectives," said Mr. Ghosn.
About Nissan
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan's second-largest automotive company, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 248,000 employees globally, Nissan provided customers with more than 4.1 million vehicles in 2010, generating revenue of 8.77 trillion yen ($102.37 billion US). With a strong commitment to developing exciting and innovative products for all, Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of 64 models under the Nissan and Infiniti brands. A pioneer in zero-emission mobility, Nissan made history with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF, the first affordable, mass-market, pure-electric vehicle and winner of numerous international accolades, including the prestigious 2011 European Car of the Year award and 2011 World Car of the Year.

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New Nissan Altima Hybrid coming

Altima Hybrid will be back with a new hybrid drive.

The current hybrid Nissan Altima, built using licensed Toyota hybrid technology, is currently being phased out. While the Altima hybrid is still available, the new production stopped.

The Nissan Altima hybrid, however, must rise again by 2012.

According to Automotive News Nissan is currently redeveloping its new, own real-wheel hybrid drive, currently in the Infiniti M35 hybrid, found in a front wheel hybrid drive for cars like the Altima Hybrid.

If the M35 hybrid, the Altima hybrid will use a single-engine, two links and a four-cylinder engine with a continuously variable transmission. In addition, the Altima hybrid also use a lithium-ion battery which is likely to be built in the United States in the same factory that soon as battery packs for the Nissan Leaf electric car will produce.

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Nissan Leaf's Carwings System Leaking Personal Information? - Automobile Magazine

Jake Holmes on June 20 2011 11:00 AM

Time to don those tin-foil hats, conspiracy theorists: The on-board infotainment software on the Nissan Leaf may “leak” the car’s location information to websites accessed via the car’s RSS reader. Computer security expert Casey Halverson discovered the flaw in his own Leaf and documented it on YouTube.

The Leaf electric car incorporates Nissan’s Carwings connectivity system, which lets owners check in on the status of their Leaf via the Internet or a smartphone. It allows for scheduling charge times, remote verification of charge status, and other features. Inside the cabin, Carwings allows drivers to have the computer “read” an RSS news feed to them in the car. According to Halverson, using the last feature “leaks” the current location of the Nissan Leaf.

Using a custom RSS feed he created, Halverson found that Carwings transmitted the GPS coordinates, speed, navigation destination, and more to external websites when requesting the RSS feed. There is apparently no way to disable the feature, which could potentially be used to track a Nissan Leaf’s location in real time.

Fortunately, by exposing the flaw, Halverson has helped eliminate it. Spokeswoman Katherine Zachary told us that Nissan is aware of the Carwings issue and that it was “corrected right away.” The data transmitted via the RSS reader apparently did not contain any indentifying information and reportedly could not easily be attributed to a specific driver or vehicle.

Sources: Computer World

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Pope Benedict XVI's Hybrid Popemobile in Development - BenzInsider

While Pope Benedict XVI has yet to approach the level of popularity that his predecessor had, he’s already miles ahead of any before him when it comes to gearing up with green tech. Take, for instance, the new hybrid Popemobile that’s currently being developed by Mercedes-Benz.

As stated by sources, what the Pope really had in mind was a fully electric vehicle. However, there are other things to be considered as well—one of the most important of which is the Pope’s own safety. An EV simply may not be enough to take the Pope to safety during an emergency, so they decided on the next best thing: a hybrid that’s powered by both an electric motor running on a lithium-ion battery during the low-speed parade travel and a petrol engine for situations that demand a bit more power.

Mercedes-Benz could not comment on the specifics of this all-new, greener Popemobile because of obvious security reasons. However, some sources say that the car will be based on Merc’s own M-Class line. Also, expect it to feature the standard security set in the current automobile, including bullet-proof plexiglass and armor plating.

The new Popemobile will likely be ready by year’s end, at best. Too bad the Pope can’t use his new set of wheels when he makes his homecoming sometime in late September.

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Falling gas prices: why fuel efficiency should still be your next purchase of the car drive

Year the highest gas prices comes yet?

Gasoline prices fall! In some areas, in the neighborhood of $ 3.00 gas even possible within the next few months. But don't expect this cheaper prices for too long. In fact, could the year highest gasoline prices be reached later this year according to some experts, oil.

Nevertheless, enjoy the pullback in prices at the pump, while it takes, but make certain fuel economy remains an important factor in your next car purchase.

Ironically, although we all want cheaper gasoline prices, cheap gasoline might not be as good as might seem obvious.

Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at OPIS claims $ 3.00 gas prices will probably synonymous with recession. On the other hand, is a robust economy certainly pushing higher gasoline prices. Finally, in the neighborhood of $ 4.00 gasoline might be on the verge of an increasingly common, at least if the u.s. economy is improving.

Long term, most oil analysts, traders and producers believe gasoline prices are likely to trend higher, even nastier price spikes. Later this year, for example, the International Energy Agency believes that as the global economy stabilizes, oil demand and supply will have a "string". Couple that with volatility of the Middle East and conditions continued his very ripe for spikes than $ 4.00.

Of course, new technologies, alternative fuels, etc. could offer some relief, some, but such exemption is probably years away, minimal.

Regardless, it is upside potential for petrol prices very real and very volatile.

So, if $ 4.00 gas has hurt consumers, as numerous studies have suggested, $ 4.00 + petrol in mind as you head to the dealer for a new or used car. The chances are that you will fill that new ride with alotta $ 4.00 gasoline in the coming years.

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Study – New car technologies is not enough to address greenhouse gas emissions

Many more public transport needed to achieve greenhouse gas cuts by 2050

If the world seriously objectives greenhouse gases gas emission and climate for the year 2050, technologies such as plug-in cars and alternative fuels is probably not enough. Instead, less light vehicle travel is essential to meet these objectives according to a new study by the University of California, Berkeley.

The personal mobility revolution is on.

In developed countries, where the emissions are now higher, for example, the study finds that a universal fleet of electric cars powered by carbon-free electricity, or 300 mpg cellulosic ethanol powered cars, or 1000 mpg ICE vehicles would be needed. Unfortunately, none of these possibilities, or a combination thereof, provide a "realistic, affordable or resilient pathway" forward.

So, while the light transportation needs to significantly more fuel efficient, better public transport and plans to reduce the average miles traveled must be part of the formula.

Ultimately, it seems clear that the future of personal transport will have to think far beyond the current box on wheels.

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On the future of the electric car

Corrections added

The moment I realized that the driving of the new Chevrolet Volt is basically a new experience was not when I first turned it on and went around the block. Yes, it was whisper quiet, powered by its 16 kilowatt, 400-pound battery, but it still felt like a "normal" car. And it wasn't when I rode the 100 or so miles from Manhattan to Southampton, NY, either. Although the batteries range only about 40 miles is, did the car even after the battery was empty; it switched to the petrol engine, in a seamless transition so I hardly noticed it. It wasn't even when I arrived in Southampton that night and a special cable connected to an electrical outlet in the garage, for charging the battery overnight.

Joe Nocera

No, what made the experience truly different — and the potential to change the way we think about gas consumption what got me thinking about the Volt — was what happened afterwards.

You know the story of the Volt, right? If the entry of General Motors in the race to a viable electric car to build — a race in which the all-electric Nissan leaf, a series of Fords in various stages of development and an electric sedan that Tesla soon with the sale will begin — perhaps the most hyped American car since Lee Iacocca rolled out the Chrysler minivan. Four years ago, and by the legendary car Executive Bob Lutz advocated started, the Volt project managed to survive the G.M. descent into bankruptcy, and emerge as the company seems great, hope, a symbol of what u.s. automakers could achieve. At least, it is claimed.

Cars such as the journal and the original Tesla — Roadster that cost more than $ 100,000 — "pure" electric vehicles powered solely by their batteries. Classic hybrids like the Toyota Prius use a battery as a kind of add-on, to promote the gas mileage of an internal combustion engine. The Volt is designed differently, however. As long as the battery JUICE, the car behaves like an electric vehicle. When the battery dies, the combustion engine, and is an old-fashioned car gas-consuming. Once you charge the battery, electricity again.

The experience of driving meshed with the way we think about the use of a car. There is no need to plan ahead, for example, to verify that the car will not run out of battery life before we can recharge it. And the gas engine eliminates the dreaded "range anxiety" that prevents most people embrace an electric vehicle. Indeed, G.M. like to call the Volt an "extended range vehicle." Motor Trend car enthusiasts, the Bible, was so impressed that the Volt are 2011 car of the year honor.

The Volt went on sale in December last year. But since Chevrolet so cautious in rolling — dealers in only seven States have gotten cars so far, with less than 2,500 sold — it can sometimes seem as if the world most invisible car of publicity. (A larger rollout is scheduled for next year.) That's why I asked G.M. as I could about the Memorial Day holiday test drive. I wanted to see for myself what all the fuss was about.

For four days, I drove it around the city, used it to pick up the groceries, took it for a visit to friends. Sometimes, when I ran out of a store, someone would stand next to ' my ' Volt, ask me questions about it. Although I am not a car expert, I was pleasantly surprised by the power cars, pick up and treatment. "People think it's going to be a dorkmobile," said Mr. Lutz, who retired last year. "But it's fun to drive."

Here's what really got me, though: on the dashboard, next to the profile that measures of the longevity of the battery, the Volt has a different profile that vehicle miles per gallon. During the two-hour drive to Southampton, I used two gallons of gas, a quarter of the tank. So, as I drove into the driveway, reading of 50 miles per gallon.

The next day, after the nightly cargo I use not gas. After about 30 mile ride in the morning, I charged it for a few hours while I puttered around the House. (It takes 10 hours to fully recharge, unless you have a special 240-volt charging unit buy.) That gave the battery 10 miles, more than enough to get me where I had to go that night on battery power alone. Before I knew it, had my miles per gallon tankful of gas that hit 80. By the next day it had topped 100. I quickly found myself obsessed with increasing my miles per gallon — and avoid having to buy more gas. When I came home from a business, I would, even for a few hours, just to grab a few more miles of range load. I was actually in control of how much gas I consumed, and it was a powerful feeling. By the time I gave the car back to General Motors, I had 300 miles driven, without another drop of gas than the original two gallons. I'm not what you would call a Sierra Club kind of guy, but I must tell you: I was kind of proud of myself.

When I started to describe Mr Lutz the psychological impact that the Volt had had on me, he laughed. "Yes," he said, "it's like playing a video game that constantly gives you back your score."

Correction: June 27, 2011

An earlier version of this article contains an incorrect reference to car batteries. The Chevrolet Volt is a 16-kilowatt-hour — not kilowatt — battery and the Nissan leaf has a 24-kilowatt hour — not kilowatt — battery pack.

Correction: June 27, 2011

An earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to with the technology that has won the race in automotive innovation a century ago; It was the gasoline-powered internal combustion engine, not a combustible engine.

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Quick Spin: 2011 Think City - Autoblog (blog)

by Jeff Glucker (RSS feed) on Jun 27th 2011 at 11:57AM

Bankruptcy Brings This EV's Range To Zero

2011 Think City - Click above for high-res image gallery
We're all passionate about saving the world, but the amount of enthusiasm we each have is different for everybody. What's your passion level? Let's turn the question into a sliding scale; on one end sits, say, BP, while on the other end, we find Ed Begley Jr. It's a big scale. If you find yourself edging close to the Begley side of the spectrum, you're no doubt paying attention to the fresh crop of all-electric cars on the market.

Electric automaker Think hopes you've been paying attention.

At least, it did up until last week when the company filed for bankruptcy a second time. Clearly, attempting to bring a relatively affordable electric vehicle to the masses is difficult without federal funding (Tesla Motors) or the bank account of a major automotive manufacturer (Nissan Leaf). Think has been down this road before, and it's possible that a group of investors could arrive to save the day. But for the company to be successful, the cost of its car, called the City, would need to come down and marketing dollars would need to go up, both of which are easier said than done. Is Think's machine even worth saving?

The 2011 Think City is a 100-percent electric hatchback wearing recyclable body panels and interior trim pieces. It's designed to attract urban eco-warriors, but does it have a broader appeal? We borrowed the key to one and spent a few hours scooting around the Orange County, California coast to find out.

If Paula Deen were in charge of the Think City's exterior design, her recipe would call for a heap of Smart, a dash of Mini Cooper headlights, one squashed Suzuki SX4 and, of course, a load of butter. That last bit would explain the matte yellow color seen on our test vehicle. Despite our car's sunny exterior, Think only offers the City EV in three colors; Bright Red, Sky Blue and Classic Black. That's fine by us, because our tester would look better if it weren't wearing We-Don't-Know-The-Sex-Of-Our-Baby Yellow.

Think has gone the ultra-compact route with the City EV, and this makes sense seeing that this tiny two-seater is designed to battle for parking spaces in urban environments.

Staring at the outside of the City, we had expected the inside would be reminiscent of a cramped Manhattan studio apartment. Since your author is taller than the average bear, we're very happy to report that the interior of the Think is closer to Central Park. Both seats make our backs happy, and all of the climate and audio controls sit close at hand. There's also a cloth roof that slides back at the push of a button, infinitely increasing our already ample head room.

That tall roof combines with a short wheelbase for an interesting combination of front and rear visibility. The front windshield is cut at a tight angle, which puts the top right in our line of vision. The bottom, however, extends far out, and provides a great view of the road directly in front of the City. Out back, the lightweight rear hatch runs all the way down to the bumper. This makes rearward vision amazing, while the forward view is merely adequate.

Speaking of that rear view, cargo space is surprisingly voluminous given the City's size. The 165.4-inch-long Volkswagen Golf TDI gives you 15.1 cubic feet of cargo space, or 46 cubic feet when the rear seats are folded. A 146.6-inch Mini Cooper with its rear seats folded gives up 24 cubic feet of cargo space, and a 139.6-inch Fiat 500 provides just 30.1. The Think City EV is just 123.7 inches long, yet provides 29 cubic feet of cargo space – more than enough for groceries, golf clubs and your growing sense of self satisfaction.

Mounted ahead of the cabin space is an electric motor that provides 34kW of power under normal load. If necessary, it can jump to 37kW, which is about 50 horsepower. Paired with a one-speed gearbox, operating the Think City is as basic as it gets. Key in, twist, hear nothing, pop the shift lever into D and away you go, a greener person. And you're able to "go" thanks to the 66 pound-feet of torque available.

Wait... 66 pound-feet of torque?

That sentence almost seems like a joke, or perhaps we accidentally read the power rating for a hopped-up lawn tractor. We can assure you it's not a joke, and we never thought it felt like one either. Rather than stick to torching Toyota Prii from stoplight to stoplight, we pointed the Think towards Southern California's 405 freeway. The manufacturer lists a top speed of 70 miles per hour, yet we found that you can squeeze a bit more out of the speedo. With our foot planted and the motor buzzing like Johnny Five at CES, we were able to push the fun up to 81 mph. That's plenty should you need to take your City to another city, as long as it's close.

Reining our speed back in, we returned to the streets and were greeted with something we expected: reduced range. Think states that the City is capable of running for 100 miles on a single charge. We didn't push the electric coupe to zero percent capacity, but we did run it down to about 20 percent. When we picked it up, we saw 80 percent on the meter, which means we used about 60 percent of battery. We turned the odometer for 45 miles over the course of that 60 percent.

For the duration of those 45 miles, we found the steering to be surprisingly heavy. Also surprising was the fact that the wheel was actually rather communicative. The road and the City are good at talking to each other. We also were able to aggressively sample the brakes, which is par for the course in me-first California driving. We only needed to slow 2,290 pounds, so the stoppers work efficiently and smoothly. The City EV is equipped with four-wheel ABS and regenerative capability for both its front discs and rear drums, should you encounter California driving at its most exciting.

While Southern California may not be the ideal place to drive the $36,495 Think City, it is no longer one of the states that offers an incentive to purchase one (California did have a $5,000 spiff, but that program has since run out of cash). Louisiana, Illinois, Georgia and Colorado offer $3,000, $4,000, $5,000 and $6,000 incentives, respectively, however. Should you reside in Indiana, you may have hit the Think jackpot – in addition to the $7,500 federal credit, you could receive a rebate worth around $9,000 back from your state – provided you have operate a commercial or government fleet and you operate said fleet within 100 miles of Indianapolis or Elkhart.

In addition to state and federal incentives, Think comes bearing its own rebates, as well. Does your address say California, Oregon, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Maine or New Mexico? If so, you can chop another $4,000 off of that $36,495 MSRP, which may finally get it below that of the competitively priced and ultimately more capable and polished Nissan Leaf.

The 2011 Think City is not cheap, but can quickly become affordable with governments and the company itself throwing money back at you. Some of you may be interested at this point, right? Problem is, Think's bankruptcy issues have put a stop to City production. Ener1, the battery supplier and prior Think investor, has stepped in to try and recover $35 million in unpaid loans. Not exactly the position you want to be in when trying to sell cars, regardless of how they're powered.

The Think situation is a shame really, because some consumers are ready to push deeper into the Begley side of the spectrum. If you're close, the City will certainly make you think about it making the all-electric leap. At least... it would've.

[Images: Copyright 2011 Jeff Glucker / AOL]

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Nissan LEAF cars leak speed, position, destination to RSS feeds - The H

The Nissan LEAF - with RSS oversharing
Source: Nissan A developer has found that the in-car electronics on the Nissan LEAF all-electric car leaks telemetry information to RSS feeds. The in-car electronics, CARWINGS, allows drivers to access their own selected RSS feeds which are then read to them.

But when Casey Halverson added his own feeds to the system, he found that his Apache server logs held more than just a request for the RSS data. The GET request for the RSS feed also included his latitude, longtitude, speed, direction, and destination latitude and longtitude.

"All of these lovely values are being provided to any third party RSS provider you configure" writes Halverson; there are no warnings that this information is being sent and it is not possible to disable it. The information is only provided when the RSS feed is requested, so it cannot be used as a vehicle tracker but it does offer real-time snapshots. The IP address shown for the request appears to belong to Hitachi Automotive Systems in Japan, which may indicate that the RSS request is being proxied by a Nissan data center; whether this will make the problem easier to fix is unclear.

Halverson has created a demonstration RSS feed for LEAF drivers which will read back the details that are being leaked. He has also created a "less evil" RSS feed which will give weather information for the car's current location. The issue is a good demonstration of the next generation of privacy problems.

(djwm)

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Fisker Karma's preparing with arrival Home Charger partnership

After a series of delays, the high-performance, $ 96,850 Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid is expected to eventually reach its first North American customer in July and August. These drivers will be plugging in to wall units installed by a team with roots dating back to the General Motors EV1 battery car.

Fisker's new partner, EV Connect, based in Culver City, California, is only two years old, but Jordan Ramer, Tennessee, the company chief executive, said that some team members helped install charging infrastructure for the EV1, while others worked for Edison EV, a subsidiary of the major utility owner Edison International, which was founded in 1996.

The 240-volt Fisker charging station, which exclusively by EV Connect will be installed.

The California Energy Commission recently granted EV Connect grants for a pilot program to install the free points at crucial Los Angeles metro rail stations and, with other providers, to upgrade from older Chargers in the State. Many of those units, Mr. Ramer said, "are part of the same infrastructure installed some of us in the 1990s."

In an exclusive agreement install EV Connect 240-volt stations built by the Lear Corporation, which also chargers for the plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt delivers. The unit itself, however, were in-house designed by Fisker.

"We wanted to look and feel of the design of the charger to the car," said Josh Batie, Fisker's manager of customer service, in a telephone interview. He added that, beginning next month, Fisker's customers will be offered a $ 2,295 package that the charger $ 800 and $ 1,495 installation would include. More difficult installations will cost more, he said.

Charging units are scheduled to begin shipping around the same time as the cars. "Dealers are literally come together now," said Roger Ormisher, a spokesperson for Fisker, when reached by telephone Wednesday. "They get their AV installed, and the E.V. Chargers come."

EV Connect will handle the so-called turnkey home network and the corporate network charging experience for Fisker in North America, including consumer at the time of vehicle purchase, logon, perform site assessments, municipal obtain authorisations, the units, installing and maintaining them under warranty. According to Mr. Ramer, Tennessee, the company has a network of 100 certified electricians around the United States in support of Fisker customers and dealers.

In a separate announcement Fisker said Wednesday that the 40 electromechanical technicians in July and August for her Project Nina venture in Wilmington, del., and 80 new production employees of October this year until February 2012 would hire. The Nina Fisker auto is what describes as a medium-sized premium sedan, also a plug-in hybrid Karma as the larger, and is expected to appear on the market in 2013. Mr Ormisher said the company also ramped rent on its headquarters in Anaheim, California

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Nissan Altima Hybrid is dead. Be replaced by the Ellure hybrid?

A more Elluring than the Altima Hybrid?

The Nissan Altima Hybrid is dead. Of course, because the Altima Hybrid was developed using leased Toyota hybrid technology, that's not really surprising, especially since Nissan now developed his own proprietary hybrid drive currently reflected in the Infiniti M35 hybrid.

In addition, the possibility of a replacement hybrid Altima showed already at the LA Auto Show.

While the details regarding the hybrid Ellure in LA were scarce, it is a match, at least in terms of size, replacing the altimeter hybrid. Even better, the hybrid Ellure is unique, an attribute that has worked well for the Toyota Prius.

So far, Nissan has confirmed that the death of the Altima Hybrid, but no details on possible replacement, including the Ellure has not supplied. Still, it seems a perfect fit.

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Prius battles: Ford C-Max Hybrid Is up to the task?

Ford's Prius-fighter will be the task?

Ford hopes to triple by 2013 her hybrid sales to 100,000 units per year with the upcoming C-Max hybrid leading the way.

"This is our Prius fighter," Ford Marketing Chief Jim Farley has said recently.

But the figures are correct?

Today, Ford's marquee hybrid Fusion hybrid, a great hybrid car and a worthy competitor to the Toyota Camry hybrid. In fact, on paper the Fusion the superior hybrid EPA, at least on paper. According to the EPA's fuel economy ratings reached the Fusion hybrid, 41/36 mpg city/highway, while the Camry hybrid is only appreciated 31/35 mpg.

This increase in fuel efficiency is also, of course, at higher costs. In addition, according to real world testing by Consumer Reports, there is really little difference in real-world fuel consumption between these two hybrid cars. Also, according to the EPA's "drivers Like You" estimates of the hybrid Camry actually out-performs the Fusion hybrid in fuel efficiency.

So, is the Fusion hybrid is more than a Camry hybrid really worth? Probably not based purely on fuel economy numbers, but in terms of styling and other facilities, it can still be a better case for many consumers.

However, how will the C-Max compare with the Prius?

Both will 5-passenger cars, although the C-Max better with the larger Prius V, instead of the conventional Prius compare maybe. While fuel consumption is not yet established, suggest rumors that the new Fusion hybrid up to 48 mpg will achieve it. Since the C-Max is expected to share this updated hybrid powertrain that would still leave prices the C-Max, a bit shy of the 51 mpg the EPA the Prius. In addition, this 48 mpg number of real-world fuel consumption, or tweaked EPA fuel economy?

Still, not the numbers that really caught my attention. Instead, the sale of numbers: 100,000 total hybrid sales in 2013. Based on current sales of Ford, who would be the C-Max less than 70,000 units per year, far less than the Prius. Consequently, in 2013, the Prius will only continue to far outsell Ford's hybrids. Add in Toyota hybrid sales worldwide, and there is still no comparison.

Why?

Price. It seems that the C-Max will be more expensive than the Prius, especially if more like the Prius V format. On the other hand, if the C-Max cheaper than the Prius were, perhaps giving the King of hybrids a run for the money, even if slightly less efficient fuel. That would mean that the C-Max could move only 100,000 + units per year.

Then again, there is always the chance Ford is under-promising and preparing to deliver. Wouldn't that be a nice surprise?

Anyway, if the Fusion hybrid, I'm sure the C-Max will be a fine hybrid offering, but I'm not quite sure it will be a real Prius contender just yet, at least not on the basis of the information available.

Category: buying hybrids, Ford C-Max hybrid, fuel consumption, hybrid cars, Misc., Toyota Prius, Toyota Prius V, ford fusion hybrid Tags: Ford Focus C-Max hybrid, ford fusion hybrid, fuel economy, hybrid cars, Toyota Camry hybrid, Toyota Prius

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